The fascial manipulation technique and its biomechanical model: a guide to the human fascial system.

This paper examines the principal characteristics of an innovative biomechanical model for interpreting the human fascial system and discusses the mechanisms that underlie the model in reference to some current trends in musculoskeletal research. The model, developed specifically for manual therapists working with movement dysfunction and pain, is the fruit of thirty-five years of study and physiotherapy clinical practice. It presents a functional interpretation of the relationship between muscles, deep fascia, and its derivatives (epimysium, perimysium, and endomysium). This model guides the clinical reasoning process employed in the manual therapy method known as Fascial Manipulation. Reference is made throughout to recent anatomical dissections designed specifically to examine the connections between deep fascia and muscles, the histological aspects of deep fascia, and its biomechanical characteristics. This knowledge could contribute to clinician’s understanding of the myofascial system and the role that deep fascia may play in musculoskeletal dysfunctions.