According to a report commissioned by the charity Arthritis Research UK, acupuncture is the most effective complimentary therapy for treating musculoskeletal conditions and one of only a few therapies that is supported by current medical evidence. The report, which examined trial data on 25 therapies, was aimed at helping people with musculoskeletal conditions and healthcare professionals to choose safe and effective therapies – particularly for osteoarthritis, low back pain and fibromyalgia.
A great positive that has come from evidence-based research is that acupuncture has proven to be as effective as, or often more effective than conventional pain treatment, pharmaceuticals, surgery and other complimentary therapies.
An acupuncture trial in four Melbourne emergency departments has found it is just as good as drugs in relieving lower-back pain as well as that from sprained ankles and migraines. Acupuncture was equivalent to conventional medicine standard care, which was strong oral analgesia, such as Endone, Panadeine Forte, Voltaren and Valium.
Pain is a symptom so rather than masking or blocking it, TCM aims to repair and resolve its causes. Patients are not then trapped into a cycle of dependence. Conditions like arthritis, carpel tunnel, sciatica, tendonitis and bursitis can be resolved rather than just managed.
As if millions of people testifying to the efficacy of acupuncture for thousands of years haven’t been reassurance enough, research has now uncovered several mechanisms as to how and why it works. Although all the mechanisms of acupuncture remain unclear, this is also the case for many Western medicines.
In the central nervous system, acupuncture creates signals that cause the brain to produce powerful anti-pain chemicals called endorphins. Neuroscientists of Rochester Medical Center in New York have recently reported Acupuncture eases pain because it also releases a natural molecule called adenosine.
Acupuncture is gaining momentum in the field of pain management and modern science is tracking its mode of operation and effectiveness. In fact, the National Institutes for Health and Clinical Excellence suggests acupuncture as a primary treatment for chronic low back pain, as patients undergoing treatments with positive expectations respond superior to those undergoing conventional care.
How can these findings come to be with acupuncture stepping above non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs in alleviating chronic low back pain? Looking into brain function to explain these findings, MRI of brain activity after acupuncture needling for chronic low back pain shows activation of the sensorimotor cortical network with deactivation of the limbic-paralimbic neocortical network. Simply put, this brain study proves that acupuncture is “turning on and shutting down” brain pathways, changing brain state, and the body is responding accordingly.
One study investigated acupuncture treatment reactions of patients after 10 sessions, and the great majority of patients claimed relaxation and willingness to experience future acupuncture treatments as their “reaction.”
Acupuncture trumped a combination of drugs, physical therapy and exercise (conventional group) in a study documenting acupuncture treatment outcomes for chronic low back pain. The acupuncture group responded with a 47% improvement in pain and function compared to the conventional group improving 27%.
Millions of people suffer with low back pain, and it is one of the top reasons people seek medical treatment. Back problems are also one of the primary reasons for appointments with acupuncturists. Debilitating for both the afflicted individual and supportive family, costly in relation to loss of work and surgical medical interventions, health-damaging from medication side-effects, and stressful to manage; chronic low back pain can be eased with this simple, relaxing treatment option that has very few side-effects.
Researchers also conclude that acupuncture effectively reduces frozen shoulder pain and restores functionality. Frozen shoulder, also known as adhesive capsulitis, is a disorder of the connective tissue in the rotator cuff region wherein there is pain, inflammation and motor impairment. All patients in the study suffered from shoulder periarthritis resulting in adhesive capsulitis. Two types of acupuncture were compared. Local acupuncture points scored a 71.8% effective rate and TCM style abdominal acupuncture enhanced scores to a 92.4% effective rate.
German researchers at Ruhr-University Bochum came up with similar results in related research and concluded that acupuncture is an effective alternative to conventional orthopedic treatments for chronic shoulder pain. In a 3 month follow-up, the true acupuncture group had a 65% recovery rate and the conventional orthopedic group had a 37% recovery rate. This latest research on the efficacy of acupuncture for the treatment of shoulder pain assists efforts in the proper integration of acupuncture into conventional pain management protocols.
In another recent study of 17,922 patient outcomes, researchers determined that acupuncture is effective for the treatment of neck and back pain, osteoarthritis, headaches and shoulder pain. The researchers concluded, “Acupuncture is effective for the treatment of chronic pain and is therefore a reasonable referral option.”
Too late for prevention? Acupuncture is effective for accelerating post operative recovery. For example studies have proved its efficacy for reducing pain and swelling around the knee and improving range of motion during the post-acute phase of rehabilitation after total knee arthroplasty.
Several recent studies show that acupuncture is an effective treatment for migraines. The Canadian Medical Association concludes acupuncture is
• effective and safe
• more effective than no acupuncture
• as effective as a B-blocker (beta blocker)
• more effective than flunarizine in decreasing the duration of migraine attacks
• still effective measured 8 weeks after the acupuncture treatment
Hubei College of Medicine and Pharmacy has demonstrated that an acupuncture session combined with moxibustion and herbs is more successful for reducing menstrual pain and cramping than ibuprofen. The results were published in new research of a randomized investigation of patients with primary dysmenorrhea, painful menstruation. Data points were taken at three, six and nine months after the beginning of treatment. The long-term positive clinical outcomes for patients having received acupuncture, moxibustion and herbal medicine was significantly superior to patients having taken ibuprofen.
Acupuncture treatment for pain management is saving the United States hundreds of millions of dollars annually in healthcare expenses when used in place of conventional treatments. How many days, weeks or years of pain do you think it could save you?
References
Acupuncture and Moxibustion plus Herbal Hot Compress for Primary Dysmenorrhea.” Journal of Clinical Acupuncture and Moxibustion 60.2 (2014): 11-13.
Nature Neuroscience. Published: May 31, 2010 (http://news.theage.com.au/breaking-news-world/the-point-about-pain-new-study-sheds-light-on-acupuncture-20100531-wnqf.html)
http://umm.edu/news-and-events/news-releases/2005/study-analysis-shows-acupuncture-effective-for-treating-chronic-low-back-pain#ixzz36fGrmvQu
http://www.healthcmi.com/Acupuncture-Continuing-Education-News/1317-acupuncture-herbs-best-drugs-for-menstrual-pain-and-cramps#sthash.ouKWXR5D.dpuf
http://www.healthcmi.com/Acupuncture-Continuing-Education-News/480-acupuncturemigrainespain#sthash.Lr4ktmeU.dpuf
http://www.healthcmi.com/Acupuncture-Continuing-Education-News/1214-acupuncture-unlocks-frozen-shoulder-pain-new-research?utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=facebook#sthash.qdZnlkf6.zFbcv9qZ.dpuf
