According to Cheatham et al. in the International Journal of Sports Physical Therapy, Instrument Assisted Soft-Tissue Mobilization (IASTM) is a skilled intervention that includes the use of specialized tools to manipulate the skin, myofascia, muscles, and tendons by various direct compressive stroke techniques.

What can IASTM treat?

IASTM can be used to treat a variety of musculoskeletal conditions such as:

• Lateral epicondylitis/osis (tennis elbow)

• Medial epicondylitis/osis (golfers elbow)

• Carpal Tunnel Syndrome

• Pronator Teres Syndrome

• Repetitive Use Injuries

• Shoulder Pain

• Neck Pain

• Sprained joints

• Tight muscles

• Scars (surgical, traumatic)

What to expect

During treatment the patient might experience mild discomfort.  Petechiae, or clusters of tiny red dots on the area of the skin that is being treated, will be present.  This is a normal result of treatment and will last one to two days.  Multiple treatments may be necessary for resolution of the issue.