Acupuncture Effective For Shoulder Pain

One hundred and thirty patients with shoulder pain (cuff tendonitis, bicipital tendonitis, capsulitis etc.) were randomly assigned to receive either eight weekly true acupuncture treatments  (local and distal points plus electro-acupuncture) or the same number of non- penetrating sham treatments (using a ‘stage dagger-type retracting placebo needle) plus sham electro-acupuncture. Blinded assessment by an independent assessor was made at seven weeks, three months and six months from the start of treatment. The pain visual analogue scale (VAS) score fell by 43% in the acupuncture group compared to 20% in the controls by the seventh week an effect which was maintained at both subsequent assessments. Similar improvements were recorded in the Lattinen Index, pain and disability, range of movement, analgesic consumption and quality of life scores. 

References*
Pain 2004; 112: 289-98

Acupuncture Relieves Chronic Back Pain

A meta-analysis of 33 randomized controlled trials of acupuncture has concluded that it can effectively relieve chronic lower back pain. Specifically it was found to be more effective than sham acupuncture and no additional treatment.

References*
Annals of Internal Medicine, Vol. 142, Issue 8. pages 651-663

Meditation Aids Longevity

A study has found that older people with high blood pressure who had practiced transcendental meditation over a period of several years 23% reduction in risk of death from all causes compared to those who practiced other relaxation techniques or who received standard medical care.  Specifically there was a 30% decrease in the rate of cardiovascular mortality and a 49% decrease in the rate of mortality due to cancer.

References*
The American Journal of Cardiology, 95;9: 1060-1064

Acupuncture & Migraines

Acupuncture (up to 15 sessions over 12 weeks) was compared with Metoprolol (a standard migraine prophylaxis medication) for effectiveness and tolerability in 113 patients randomized to one of two groups. The number of days with migraine decreased by 2.5 days in the acupuncture group compared to 2.2 days in the medication group. Those experiencing 50% or greater reduction in attacks was 61% for acupuncture and 49% and 49% for medication. Severe adverse effects occurred only in the medication group.

References*
12th Annual Symposium on Complementary Health Care, 19-21 September 2005,  Exeter, UK

Acupuncture & Lower Back Pain

An analysis of Canadian patients who had self-referred to acupuncturists for treatment for lower back pain(LBP), found that they made significantly fewer visits to their physician for LBP care in the year following treatment (1.55 versus 4.45 in 1999, 1.41 versus 7.17 in 2000 and .86 versus 4.04 in 2001) compared to LBP sufferers who had not received acupuncture. They consequently required significantly less physician expenditure (around 25%) of the cost of LBP care in the general population).

References*
12th Annual Symposium on Complementary Health Care, 19-21 September 2005,  Exeter, UK

Acupuncture speeds Childbirth

First stage nearly 40% shorter. A study carried out at the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at the University of Vienna has shown that prenatal acupuncture can reduce the duration of the first stage of labor (196 minutes versus 321 minutes in the control group), but not the second stage of labor, can significantly reduce the use of oxytocin in both the first and second stages, and significantly raise serum levels of prostaglandin E2 at the end of the first stage.

References*
Abstracted in Deutsche Zeitschrift für Akupunctur, Jg. 43, 1, 2000.**

Meditation as good as Lipitor

Transcendental meditation appears to decrease atherosclerosis and may lower the risk of heart attack and stroke in hypertensive adults. In the study, a group of hypertensive African-Americans received training in transcendental meditation. After 6-9 months, carotid intima-media thickness increased by .054 mm in the control group, but decreased by .098 in the meditation group; this reduction was similar to that achieved by lipid-lowering drugs and extensive lifestyle changes.

References*
Stroke 2000; 31: 568-73.**

Acupuncture helps Fibromyalgia

A new study has been carried out to assess the effectiveness of acupuncture in treating pain levels and decreasing the number of tender points in fibromylagia patients. Twenty-nine patients with at least a six year history of fibromyalgia were given acupuncture and tested by using a pain scale and by dolorimetry (a method of measuring pain perception in degrees ranging from unpleasant to unbearable by using heat applied to the skin). No other pain medication was taken. Pain levels were found to decrease from 64.0 to 34.5 after acupuncture, with a decrease in the number of tender points from 16.0 to 11.8. Results showed an increase in certain blood chemicals (serotonin and substance P which help to regulate pain.

References*
Pain treatment of fibromyalgia by acupuncture. Sprott H, Franke S, Kluge H, Hein G. Rheumatol Int 1998; 18(1):35-36. **

Non-healing Wounds?

Acupuncture healed them. Brown recluse spiders, found mainly in central and southern United States, have venom similar to rattlesnakes venom. It contains 9 different enzymes that cause tissue damage and necrosis which can continue if left untreated. A 43-year old woman who was bitten on the leg was treated with amoxicillin-clavulanate and dapsone orally followed by intravenous vancomycin without resolution. After two months, her non-healing wound was about 2 mm deep and 2.5-3.0 cm across. She received surrounding acupuncture with electric stimulation. After two treatments the pain had substantially subsided and the wound had begun to heal, and the wound was completely healed after 4 treatments.

References*
Medical Acupuncture, Spring / Summer 1999, Volume 11 / Number 1.**

Acupuncture for Tennis Elbow

Study Suggests Treatment Is Effective, Even in Difficult Cases After an average of 3.9 treatments, a "maximal response" was achieved, with every patient reporting a disappearance of their symptoms. This response also appeared to last much longer than that usually seen in patients using painkillers, braces or other traditional methods.

Nearly every patient who participated had previously attempted to cure their tennis elbow through conventional means, with some patients trying multiple therapies without success before trying acupuncture. .had used an elbow brace or splint; .received corticosteroid injections for pain relief; and one patient had elbow surgery, all without achieving the desired effect, before turning to acupuncture.

References *
1. Dorsher PT. Treatment of chronic lateral epicondylitis with acupuncture: a pilot study. Presented at the annual meeting of the American Academy of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, San Francisco, CA, November 4, 2000.

Acupuncture Relieves Knee Pain

Study Finds "Clear, Durable Effect" in Reducing Pain and Improving Function According to the National Institutes of Health, more than four million people seek medical care for a knee problem each year. A leading cause of chronic knee pain, particularly in young adults, is patellofemoral pain syndrome (PFPS). The condition occurs most frequently in adolescents who participate in sports, and is one of the most common diagnoses given at orthopedic centers and sports medicine clinics worldwide.

.the scientists concluded that "our study is one of the largest treatment studies on the syndrome, and it shows a clear, durable effect of acupuncture treatment in reducing pain and improving function for the patient."

References*
Jensen R, Gothesen O, Liseth K, Baerheim A. Acupuncture treatment of patellofemoral pain syndrome. J Altern Complement Med Dec 1999;5(6):521-7.

Study: Acupuncture Better Than Massage for Chronic Neck Pain

Researchers Find "Clear Clinical Advantages" in Reducing Pain and Improving Motion

For most people, a quick visit to a massage therapist has been traditionally considered the best way to provide temporary relief of chronic neck pain. The results of a randomized trial of neck pain patients published in a recent issue of the British Medical Journal, however, appear to suggest otherwise. According to a team of German and Swedish researchers, acupuncture provides greater short-term pain relief and increases range of motion better than traditional massage techniques.

References*
1. Irnich D, Behrens N, Molzen H, et al. Randomised trial of acupuncture compared with conventional massage and "sham" laser acupuncture for treatment of chronic neck pain. British Medical Journal June 30, 2001;322:1-6.

Acupuncture Superior to Drug Therapy for Migraines

Study Highlights the "Exceptional Usefulness" of Treatment According to the National Headache Foundation, as many as 28 million Americans suffer from migraine headaches each year.1They can last from a few minutes to several days, which in some cases may completely incapacitate the person suffering an attack.

Migraine headaches are also one of the leading causes of time missed from work. It is estimated that migraine sufferers lose more than 157 million workdays each year, leading to a loss of approximately 50 billion dollars per year due to absenteeism and medical expenses caused by headache. An additional four billion dollars a year is spent on pain relievers for migraines and other headaches, but many of these remedies either do not work as needed, or simply mask an underlying condition.

In one of the largest studies of its kind to date, a team of investigators in Italy examined the effectiveness of acupuncture versus a variety of pharmacological therapies in treating migraines. Their results, published in a recent issue of the Journal of Traditional Chinese Medicine,2 revealed that patients given acupuncture experienced fewer migraine episodes, missed fewer days from work, and suffered no side effects compared to patients on conventional drug therapy. They also found acupuncture to be more cost-efficient, estimating a savings of hundreds of millions of dollars in private and social health expenditures if it were used to treat headaches alone instead of drugs.

References*
1. NHF Headache Facts. Available from the National Headache Foundation (www.headaches.org). 2. Liguori A, Petti F, Bangrazi A, Camaioni D, Guccione G, Pitari GM, Bianchi A, Nicoletti WE. Comparison of pharmacological treatment versus acupuncture treatment for migraine without aura - analysis of sociomedical parameters. J Tradit Chin Med 2000;20(3):231-40.

Electroacupuncture for Plantar Fasciitis

Treatment Reduces Pain, Improves Function in Heel Pain Patients Plantar fasciitis is one of the most common causes of heel pain. Most often seen in athletes, obese people, and persons whose jobs require a considerable amount of walking or standing (especially on hard surfaces), the condition results from inflammation of the plantar fascia, a broad, ligament-like structure that extends from the calcaneus to the base of the toes. Excess weight or repetitive stress can cause small tears in the fascia, leading to sometimes severe pain that can take several months to resolve. Traditional therapies for plantar fasciitis vary depending on the degree of the condition and the person being treated. The most common forms of treatment include rest, ice, orthotics and anti-inflammatory drugs. More severe cases can require injections or even surgery. However, none of these modalities is considered more effective than another, and occasionally, patients will develop chronic, disabling symptoms despite the best efforts. In an article in a recent issue of Medical Acupuncture, researchers from Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, D.C. examined the role of electroacupuncture in the management of this condition. The results of their study suggest that electroacupuncture is an effective form of care for plantar fasciitis, producing marked reductions in foot pain and improved function in a relatively short amount of time. Recent studies have shown that acupuncture - with or without electrical stimulation - can be an effective form of pain relief for a variety of musculoskeletal conditions.

Reference*
1. Perez-Millan R, Foster L. Low-frequency electroacupuncture in the management of refractory plantar fasciitis: a case series. Medical Acupuncture 2001;13(1):47-49.

*Excerpts taken from Acupuncture Today.
**Excerpts taken from News in The Journal of Chinese Medicine.

Links:
Acupuncture Today
Acupuncture.com
The Academy of Oriental Medicine at Austin
The National Institutes of Health
Web MD Dr. Koop
The Mayo Clinic
The American Assoiciation of Oriental Medicine
The Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine Alliance