About Us & Our Mission

The mission of eToims® Soft Tissue Comfort Center is to increase quality of life by providing diagnostic and management approaches for nerve related muscle discomfort and/or pain with patented eToims® Twitch Relief Method.

eToims® Soft Tissue Comfort Center

The eToims® Twitch Relief Method is a unique anatomical and physiological approach that utilizes surface electrical stimulation to excite nerve-muscle meeting (trigger) points to induce twitches (local muscle contractions) that are characteristically brisk and strong. Such twitch elicitation can result in substantial reduction in muscle discomfort and/or pain in the areas stimulated. The mechanisms for pain/discomfort relief are thought to include stretch effects and twitch induced improvement in blood flow from local muscle exercise effects.

In myofascial pain, the mediate root of pain, muscle spasm, acts through multiple mechanisms that experimentally have been demonstrated to include: via stimulating stretch and pain receptors, located within muscle and without (its sheath, attached ligaments, tendons, periosteum, etc.); and via compression mechanism of blood vessels primarily within the muscle, impairing inflow of oxygen and vital nutrients and impairing outflow of tissue wastes. Tissue lack of oxygen, termed hypoxia, causes pain wherever it occurs, eg. heart tissue hypoxia results in angina. Blood carries oxygen and the Greek root of the term ischemia, refers to keeping blood back, resulting in localized anemia, leading to hypoxia or anoxia of the involved tissue. Impairment of blood flow impairs removal of localized tissue wastes, which in themselves experimentally are understood to cause pain.

For eToims® Twitch Relief Method to work, one must locate involved trigger points and stimulate them to activate muscle twitches of sufficient strength to break the spasm by initiating contraction, exercise the muscle, which is followed by muscle relaxation. Temporally, these processes reverse the above enumerated localized causes of pain.

eToims® provides potential benefit by relieving mediate root causes for muscle pain, discomfort, tenderness, spasm, and insomnia secondary to the above, consequently enhancing function and quality of life. While this approach can work collaboratively with other approaches, such as medications (eg. narcotics), its duration of action far exceeds medications aimed at symptoms alone. It has potential to actually remedy the situation, depending upon multiple factors. Unlike many narcotics, it does not interfere with family/home responsibilities, social interaction, occupation, recreation, sex, self-care and life-support activities. As eToims® does not promote becoming obtunded, which can occur with narcotics, it enables and may facilitate the patient’s interactions with others at work, at home, and in other social occasions. Additionally, in some instances, if intervention begins in time, there exists theoretical potential to prevent acute myofascial pain from becoming chronic myofascial pain.

eToims® Soft Tissue Comfort Center is the only center in the world providing the eToims® Twitch Relief Method. We deliver quality innovative neuromuscular specialty management in an environment of compassionate, competent, professional and personalized care. We are committed to providing state-of-art care to those with nerve related muscle discomfort and/or pain with attention to the needs of the individual patient.

Established in 2006 by Jennifer Chu, M.D., Associate Professor in the Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, University of Pennsylvania Medical School, the unique eToims® Soft Tissue Comfort Center specializes in state-of-the-art diagnosis and individualized care of soft tissue (nerves and muscles) discomfort and/or pain with innovative eToims®. We devote our services to the acute and long-term care of patients suffering from soft tissue discomfort and/or pain due to injuries from (a) work, (b) repetitive and cumulative strain, (c) sports, (d) aging, (e) whiplash from car accidents, falls, lifting etc. and (e) activities of daily living.

We look forward to the privilege of caring for you and for allowing us to be your partner in attending to your healthcare needs. More so than in any other specialty in medicine, we have mutual understanding and deep respect for those who suffer from nerve related muscle discomfort and/or pain.

Diseases eToims® can help treat:

Neck muscle pain Mid-back muscle pain lower back muscle pain arm pain shoulder pain elbow pain wrist pain hand pain hip pain knee pain ankle pain foot pain Tension headaches Myofascial pain syndrome Fibromyalgia

Whiplash of the spine or whiplash Repetitive strain injuries Tendonitis Bursitis Rotator cuff injuries Tennis elbow Early carpal tunnel syndrome Musculoskeletal pain Musculoskeletal discomfort sports injuries  Degenerative disc Bulging disc herniated disc Spinal stenosis