What Is Gunn Intramuscular Stimulation (IMS)?

Gunn Intramuscular Stimulation, or IMS for short, is a technique used by physiotherapists since it was developed in the 1970’s in Vancouver by the pain specialist Dr. Chan Gunn. IMS is used for the assessment and treatment of chronic pain that is neuropathic in nature. This usually manifests as chronic tightness and stiffness such as in long-term back and neck pain.

IMS involves the use of very thin needles which are inserted into the tight muscles that have been affected by neuropathy. This creates a ‘grasp’ or cramp sensation which results in the muscle releasing, taking the tension off the muscle and surrounding structures. In this way, hypersensitive muscles can be desensitised and the persistent pull of short muscles can be released, which ultimately resolves your pain.

The most important part of Gunn IMS is that it looks for problems in the nervous system that may be the root cause of the pain. This approach differs from “trigger-point dry needling”, which does not look for an underlying cause of the pain in the nervous system, and only seeks to address the painful tissue.

Our Physiotherapist, Krissy is currently the only physiotherapist in NL certified in GUNN IMS.