Active Release Technique is the gold standard of soft tissue care. This technique is a hands on approach that health care providers use to treat muscles, tendons, fascia, ligaments, and nerves. The technique involves the practitioner applying tension to a specific muscle and the patient actively shortens and lengthens against this tension.
Example of Active Release Technique
What Does Active Release Technique Do?
Active Release Technique breaks up adhesions that develop from acute or overuse injuries. What is an “adhesion”? An adhesion is dense fibrotic tissue that the body produces as a result of injury.
These adhesions may lead to pain and restrict your range of motion.
Benefits of Active Release Technique include:
- Decrease in pain
- Improvements in mobility
- Increase in circulation which brings nutrients to the tissue and helps remove waste
- Faster recovery times after injury
Who Can Become Certified in Active Release Technique?
- Chiropractors
- Physiotherapists
- Massage Therapists
- Osteopaths
- Acupuncturists
- Athletic Trainers
How Frequent Can I See an Active Release Technique Practitioner?
The maximum frequency of Active Release Technique is every other day.
Rarely is this recommended by your practitioner but in certain situations, such as a sporting event, this frequency may be necessary to make sure that you ready are to compete.
If the same muscle group is treated everyday it may lead to an excessive inflammatory response which would delay your recovery time.
Examples of Common Conditions That Can be Treated by Active Release Technique:
- Carpal Tunnel
- Golfer’s Elbow
- Tennis Elbow
- Shoulder Impingement
- Frozen Shoulder
- De Quervain’s Tenosynovitis
- Shin Splints
- Plantar Fasciitis
- Turf Toe
- Peripheral Nerve Entrapment
- Muscle Strains
- Ankle Sprains
- Bicipital Tendonitis
- Jumper’s Knee
- Patellar Tendonitis
Dr. Brandon Parnham, DC 