Fascia: the most neglected part of our body is finally starting to receive attention

• However, there is also a growing interest in one element of our anatomy that is often overlooked: our fascia.
• Fascia is a thin casing of connective tissue, mainly made of collagen – a rope-like structure that provides strength and protection to many areas of the body.
• It surrounds and holds every organ, blood vessel, bone, nerve fibre and muscle in place.
• It is hard to see fascia in the body, but you can get a sense of what it looks like if you look at a steak.

When fascia gets damaged

• Injury to fascia takes a long time to repair, probably because it possesses similar cells to tendons (fibroblasts), and has a limited blood supply.
• Recently, fascia, particularly the layers close to the surface, have been shown to have the second-highest number of nerves after the skin.
• Up to 30% of people with musculoskeletal pain may have fascial involvement or fascia may be the cause.

Fascia in disease

• Aside from getting damaged, fascia can also provide paths that infections can travel along, within muscles.
• This is a particular problem in the neck, where there are several layers of fascia for infections to travel along.
• Fascia can also be implicated in more serious health conditions, such as necrotising fasciitis.

We can see it better now

• One reason fascia has been overlooked in health and disease is because it was difficult to see using current imaging technology.
• More recently, though, MRI and ultrasound imaging have been shown to be beneficial in visualising fascia, particularly in musculoskeletal conditions such as plantar fasciitis, and pathological changes in the fascia of the shoulder and neck.

Adam Taylor does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.