The Future of Acupuncture News

The likelihood of my posting an article from the Las Vegas Review Journal is rather minute, but just in case, Acupuncture News will continue the tradition of writing comments about news and supplying a portion of the article with a link to the original report.

Why this announcement? Wired online reports that Steve Gibson, CEO of Righthaven, has begun acquiring copywrite rights to several publication for the main intention of to suing bloggers for re-posting articles. Not the friendliest solution to save the ever-diminishing cash flow of the newspaper industry, but since it is cheaper to settle than to battle, the strategy may work out.

In the meantime, more research and programs are opening up around the country using auricular acupuncture to treat out veterans suffering with PTSD. Check these out:

Research Call: Treating PTSD-related insomnia with auricular acupuncture

Bay Area Veterans' Acupuncture Clinic

Happy Mommies, Happy Babies

Given the length of time it takes most anti-depressants to work and the growing body of research that indicates their use yields little effect in mild to moderate depression, it is great to see more investigation into non-pharmaceutical management of prenatal and antenatal depression. Acupuncture has helped a number of my clients taper off their medication while trying to conceive and assist them in managing symptoms of depression during the three stages of pregnancy. Many have been able to get through the postpartum period without having to resume their medication either! With hope, there will be more comparative studies that demonstrate the efficacy of TCM and other CAM therapies in the next few years.

Acupuncture Benefit Seen in Pregnancy

By Shirley Wang

Acupuncture designed to treat depression appears to improve symptoms in pregnant women, suggesting it as an alternative to antidepressant medication during pregnancy, a study found.

The study, published Monday in the journal Obstetrics & Gynecology, is the largest to date examining the effectiveness of acupuncture to treat depression in pregnant women. It was funded by a grant from the government's Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality. "Acupuncture that we have tested works for pregnant, depressed women," said Rachel Manber, a study author and professor at Stanford University. However, "no single study is enough to make policy recommendations," she said.

Depression in pregnancy is a risk factor for postpartum depression. Postpartum depression is associated in some studies with poorer cognitive and emotional development in children. Some have linked depression in pregnancy and low birth weight.

As many as 14% of pregnant women are thought to develop a significant depression at some point during their pregnancy, according to the study authors, comparable to numbers who suffer from postpartum depression. Antidepressants are generally considered safe for use in pregnancy, but research has been limited and concerns continue to grow, according to the National Institute of Mental Health. One study showed that the risk of persistent pulmonary hypertension, a potentially serious lung condition, is significantly greater in newborns whose mother took antidepressants later in pregnancy. The Food and Drug Administration recommends that patients and physicians "carefully consider and discuss together" the benefits and risks taking antidepressants during pregnancy."Antidepressants are not an attractive option for many women," said Dr. Manber. "Many women are concerned about using antidepressant medication during pregnancy."

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Happy 4th of July!

For those planning to celebrate this Independence Day with traditional grill outs, booze, and intense audi-visual stimuli, we will be here to help! Check out the new research showing how acupuncture helps increase exercise tolerance in heart disease.

Acupuncture ups exercise tolerance in heart patients

ANI, Jul 2, 2010, 10.00am IST

A new study indicates that acupuncture can improve exercise tolerance in patients suffering from chronic heart failure.

Dr. Johannes Backs, physician and study director at the Department of Internal Medicine III (Cardiology, Angiology, and Pneumology - Medical Director: Professor Dr. Hugo Katus) of Heidelberg University Hospital conducted the clinical pilot study.

Patients with this disease suffer from shortness of breath and fatigue brought on by physical exercise.

The needles do not increase the heart’s pump function, but they seem to have an influence on skeletal muscle strength and thus can increase the walk distance that heart patients can cover.

In a study where patients were given ten sessions of acupuncture on points that boost general strength according to Traditional Chinese Medicine, the results showed that these patients could walk longer distances, recovered more quickly and tended to feel subjectively less exhausted.

The scientists now plan to study whether relatively low-cost acupuncture can improve the prognosis for cardiac patients over the long term.

The findings have been published in the medical journal Heart .

Source

Tales from the Undertrained and Over-initialed

This story has been posted all over The Book of Face today by some fellow acupuncturists, and in keeping with my last blog entry I am following suit. Enjoy!

Abbreviated Courses In Acupuncture For Physicians Pose A Serious Problem

• Sometimes, understanding one’s background can clarify their particular point of view. So in the spirit of “full disclosure” I would like to tell you a little about mine.

  I began my medical career in 1979 when I received my MD degree from Albany Medical College. I trained in diagnostic radiology at George Washington University Hospital in Washington, DC. I entered private practice and spent 20 years doing full-service hospital radiology. It was at the end of these 20 years that changes occurred in my life, changes that made me look at my direction and commitments. It was at that time in my career when I discovered acupuncture, and the power this medicine has to heal. Please understand, I was awestruck at the conditions acupuncture could effectively treat —- conditions that from my previous medical training I knew were precisely those no one wanted to get stuck with because there was no effective treatment. I am a fellowship-trained interventional radiologist, and I have put needles into arteries, veins, solid organs, abscesses, tumors, pleural cavities, peritoneal cavities….you name it. But I had never felt the pull of Qi on a needle, I had never intentionally manipulated a needle to achieve a specific energetic effect, I had never contacted the energy of a meridian, nor used needles themselves, as instruments of healing. Here was a whole new science to learn. And the amazing thing is that it has a 3000 year history with millions upon millions of people undergoing clinical trial in China for 30 centuries!

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Doctors, excuse me, CHIROPRACTORS, using "Biomedical Acupuncture" as a Loophole for Practice

And not just chiropractors. Dentists, occupational therapists, physicians, and physiotherapists can all get on the medical acupuncture bandwagon. Some of these programs range from a whopping underwhelming 300 hour certificate to a dismal weekend course. Of course the proponents of this farce claim that acupuncture theory is too esoteric because it does not rely on sound anatomy and physiology.

Funny, I took A&P as well as biology, chemistry, biochemistry, lab data, western physical exam, nutrition, psychology, surface anatomy, and western pathology when I was in school. And those were not even 25% of my nearly 3000 hour graduate program!

But of course, this is all old news. The Medical Acupuncture Association has been around for ten years. And this is hardly the first time I have ranted about other disciplines encroaching on our territory without proper training.

What has me hot under the collar this time is the claim TCM is anecdotal while biomedical acupuncture is scientific - check out this zinger of a story.

The fact these "dry needling" techniques they teach in these seminars stems from over 3000 years of acupuncture theory and practice is apparently of no consequence. Oh yes, it is okay to jab needles into muscles and random trigger points (that's ashi points, those that have a real education in acupuncture know that already) and claim it has a "real" effect because it is causing a micro-trauma that stimulates the body's healing response. Not like that qi stuff that stimulates the body's healing response, no sir. When the point is needled, you are feeling the exact same sensations whether you call it a major quadratus lumborum trigger point or "Pi Gen," the difference is that in TCM, you are not just treating the branch symptom, you are treating the root cause.

The other reason I am so irritated is I just know insurance is going to start covering this nonsense. I already live in a state where legitimate acupuncturists cannot get in-network but at least chiropractors are banned, in theory, from practicing acupuncture without an acupuncture license for the moment (although they STILL put themselves in the phonebook under "physicians MD and osteopaths OD").

While the AAAOM is working to get professional parity through supposed acupuncture doctoral programs, our profession, which still does not have a national title and basic scope of practice, may just get pulled out from under us.

Acupuncture and Spinal Nerve Cell Recovery

More research is coming out demonstrating acupuncture is an effective modality to help prevent further death and destruction of nerve cells in patient's with spinal cord injuries. I tried to locate the original research report, but my online sources were not forthcoming. It looks like Kyung Hee University is doing some pretty interesting digging into the effects of specific points like H7 demonstrating decrease in anxiety related to nicotine withdrawal (St36 failed to produce results), GB34 for Parkinson's Disease, and GB34 and GB39 stimulation after perfusion following an ischemic attack.

Acupuncture could help spinal recovery: study

By QMI AGENCY

A 2003 study showed acupuncture - a traditional Chinese medicine that treats pain by inserting and manipulating long, thin needles into various points of the body - can improve the sensory and motor functions of people with spinal cord injuries.

More recently, researchers at Kyung Hee University in Seoul, South Korea, tried to find out why. The study's results were published in the most recent edition of Neurobiology of Disease.

The researchers damaged the spines of 75 rats. One third were treated with acupuncture.

After 35 days, the rats that received the needle treatment stood and walked better than those that did not.

What's more, the acupuncture-treated rats had less nerve cell death and lower levels of the protein that causes inflammation.

The researchers hypothesize that the needles cause a stress response in the body that lessens inflammation. The inflammation that occurs after spinal cord injuries causes nerve cell death and lessens the chance of recovery.

Source: Toronto Sun

Legislative Update

Well, the bill to change our title to "Licensed Acupuncturist" did not pass, and that is a shame. However, we are still certified to practice, so at least we did not loose anything.

I am actually really surprised we did not get this through. The Kentucky Medical Association was so busy kicking up such a histrionic fuss over the proposed changes to the ARNP scope of practice legislation (sadly, also did not pass), that they they actually supported the LAc bill. But, as is the case with so much of politics, the backer of our bill irritated some fellow state senators and as a result, they opposed anything he brought to the floor. Lovely.

Isn't pride one of the 7 deadly sins?

But, in better news, check out this story from a soldier who underwent an extensive rehab program, including acupuncture, at the Warrior Combat Stress Reset Center at Fort Hood. I only wish they would hire trained acupuncturists instead of MDs who went to a seminar. Someday . . .

A US medic's tale of traumatic war stress treatment

Dead Bill

I perused the bill pretty quickly and I am sorry it did not pass. One thing I have yet to understand is why chiropractors are considered qualified to practice acupuncture without a license (MDs too, for that matter, but the AAAOM would need a lot more money to challenge the AMA on that one!). This bill was pretty strict on the guidelines for disclosure and medical condition notification which I figured would have appeased any safety concerns in the opposition argument. Good luck to our friends in South Dakota for next round. Hopefully someone (AAAOM, ahemm) will work on a national certification procedure (like RNs, MDs, and DOs) rather than this state-by-state nonsense we have had to deal with for so long.

Acupuncture licensing bill killed by committee

Associated Press - February 9, 2010 10:15 AM ET

PIERRE, S.D. (AP) - A bill that would have regulated acupuncturists in South Dakota was killed by a legislative committee Tuesday.

The bill would have adopted National Certification Commission for Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine standards used in 44 other states.

Castlewood Republican Rep. Kristi Noem said the measure would help protect South Dakota's eight practicing acupuncturists and differentiate them from those who have had no education or training.

Committee members said the bill needed more work before moving forward.

Copyright 2010 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Bill 1203P

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House Bill 65

Kentucky acupuncturists are going to Frankfort on Thursday to try and accomplish two objective:

1. Change our title from certified (CAc) to licensed (LAc) - like almost every other state in the country

2. Delete the need to notify MD if we treat patients with high blood pressure or diabetes since these are not contraindications for acupuncture

We had originally intended to ask for the practice of acupuncture without a license to be considered a felony. Despite winning certification in KY in 2006, there are still plenty of "beauty shop dry-needlers" and healthcare practitioners performing acupuncture without proper training (ahhem, DCs and PTs). Since we are under the KY Board of Medicine and prior to 2006, practicing acupuncture without a license was synonymous with practicing medicine without a license, we figured this was a reasonable request, however our representative thought removing the clause would help our case for the other 2 points.

Oh well.

If anyone out there is an activist kind of mood today, we would really appreciate phone calls to our local representatives who will be voting on this issue. To leave a message in support of House Bill 65, call 1-800-372-7181. Here is their contact info for specific representatives and thank you for your support!


Tom Burch, chair Loiusville 502-564-8100 x601

Bob DeWeese, vice chair Louisville 502-564-4334

David Watkins, vice chair Henderson 502-564-8100 x700

John Arnold Sturgis - 502-564-8100 x709

Jim Glenn Owensboro - 502-564-8100 x705

Joni Jenkins - Shively - 502-564-8100 x692

Tim Moore - Elizabethtown - 502-564-8100 x702

Ruth Ann Palumbo - Lexington - 502-564-8100 x600

Scott Brinkman - Louisville - 502-564-8100 x682

Brent Housman - Paducah - 502-564-8100 x634

Mary Lou Marzian - Louisville - 502-564-8100 x643

Darryl Owens - Louisville - 502-564-8100 x685

Susan Westrom - Lexington - 502-564-8100 x740

Addia Wuchner - Florence - 502-564-8100 x707

New Year News

This is more of Jing Acupuncture news, but I have officially graduated my MSN program (4.0) and plan to take my family nurse practitioner license sometime in March. Most of the research out there lately has involved acupuncture for hot flashes, chemo side effects, and pain management - I think I have covered these areas well enough for the time being. Hopefully something saucy will crop up in the new year. I do not like to engage in politics that do not relate to acupuncture on the blog, but there are certainly all sort of bills about at the moment that could impact both acupuncture and nursing that may be viable reporting subjects in the near future. In the meantime, here is a recent article about the current state of pain management in the US

Pain Management Failing as Fears of Prescription Drug Use Rise

Cupping Massage

A few months ago I ran across this massage technique while looking over the menu of services at Canyon Ranch Spa Club in Las Vegas. After a bit of googling, I came across the website and decided to pick up the DVD from Lhasa OMS along with a few new cupping sets.

The technique is adapted for body workers and uses much lighter suction than TCM cupping. The theory is that the lighter suction stimulates the lymph system to loosen adhesions and pull stuck fluid into the lymph system where it is easier to eliminate. I started utilizing massage cupping in my practice and found it is great to help loosen up the body before doing traditional cupping techniques. It is not as effective for those with significant stagnation, but it is great for those with mild blockages who also need a little detoxification and TLC.

I just had this done last week and found it wonderfully relaxing on areas of mild tension, but in the parts that need a lot of work, I was yearning a bit for some strong stationary cupping. If I could have followed it up with some acupuncture, it would have been perfect - I even fell asleep a bit during the treatment.

I contacted the founder and encouraged her to get certified as an NCCAOM CEU provider. The system is easy to learn and a great addition to practices that focus on the individual patient.

H1N1 Updates

I found this snippet about Chinese Medicine and H1N1 prevention/treatment, but the article also has some good stuff about other CAM therapies. I have been doing monthly acupuncture "flu shot" treatments on a lot of my patients using a blend of acupuncture and herbal therapies and so far, no flu!

Holistic treatments boost defense against H1N1
By Laura LaDue, LAc
from WillametteLive, Section Wellness
Posted on Sat Oct 31, 2009 at 10:17:14 PM PDT

This flu season, H1N1 is particularly prevalent. In addition to being a nasty virus, it carries with it a lot of cultural baggage in the form of fears and misconceptions.

Like seasonal flu, H1N1 is spread mainly person-to-person through coughing or sneezing of infected people. Symptoms include fever, cough, sore throat, runny or stuffy nose, body aches, headache, chills and fatigue. Some people may have vomiting and diarrhea. It is possible to be infected and have respiratory symptoms without a fever.

Most people who have been sick with 2009 H1N1 virus have recovered without needing medical treatment. However, hospitalizations and deaths from infection with this virus have occurred. You should seek urgent medical care if you experience severe symptoms, such as difficulty breathing, chest pain, or persistent vomiting.

How does Chinese medicine prevent and treat the H1N1 virus?

From the perspective of Chinese medicine, swine flu is not so different from other types of flu and can most certainly be prevented and treated by means of Chinese medicine. Traditional Chinese medicines for H1N1 do not attack the virus. Rather, they try to remove those internal conditions in the body that enable the virus to take hold and multiply. "There is no medicine to directly kill the virus. A virus is like a seed: it needs things like temperature and water to grow," Dr. Xu Wenbing, Chairman of the Hope Institute of Chinese Medicine in Beijing, said. "When you take away these conditions, the body will cure itself."

Acupuncture helps by bringing the body back into balance, making it more resistant to potential invading viruses. There are specific acupuncture points for boosting the immune system, including points for increasing your white blood cell count. If one is already ill, acupuncture can speed recovery and lessen the symptoms of illness.

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I wanted to sneak this in here because after walking around the polytrauma unit in the VA this week, my aspirations to use my nurse practitioner and acupuncture skills in this population grew exponentially. The Louisville VA is one of the best in the country - the staff is always smiling and polite and the hospital itself is holding up well when they could have let it go to pot since plans are in the works for a new facility. The time may be ripe for a proposal, especially since it is a growing trend.

Acupuncture Today November, 2009, Vol. 10, Issue 11

Comprehensive Military PTSD Treatment Programs

By Joe C. Chang, MAOM, Dipl. OM, LAc

So far, there are four comprehensive posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and combat stress treatment programs in the U.S. Army that have incorporated different CAM approaches in their treatment programs.

Many of these comprehensive programs started as a result of the Ft. Bliss Restoration and Resilience Center, near El Paso, Texas. This integrative approach treats many of the symptoms of PTSD that are not addressed through the standard mental health protocols that included cognitive-behavioral therapy and pharmacotherapy. The Ft. Bliss program incorporated medical massage, meditation, yoga, acupuncture, marital/family therapy and Reiki with standard treatment protocols . Additionally, soldiers go through a daily 45-minute "power walk" and play water polo three times a week.

At the Warrior Combat Stress Reset Program at Ft. Hood (near Killeen, Texas), their intensive, combat-stress three-week program focuses on the reduction of hyperarousal and reactivity. Reducing these core symptoms of combat stress and posttraumatic stress disorder allows other treatments to be more effective. The program includes group counseling, biofeedback, individual counseling and alternative therapies (massage, acupuncture, yoga and Reiki).

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Hallelujah, Proof Is Here!

Some said they did not believe in bacteria until they saw it under a microscope. Later others doubted the atom until the advent of the electron microscope. Now, we have the chance to prove meridians exist through light conduction studies. Can proof og Qi be far behind? We shall see!

New scientific breakthrough proves why acupuncture works

New groundbreaking research shows that the insertion of an acupuncture needle into the skin disrupts the branching point of nerves called C fibres. These C fibres transmit low-grade sensory information over very long distances by using Merkel cells as intermediaries. Dr. Morry Silberstein of the Curtin University of Technology will publish his research in the Journal of Theoretical Biology later this year.

Dr. Silberstein mentions that they have known, for some time, that the acupuncture points show lower electrical resistance than other nearby areas of the skin. His research specifically pinpoints that the C fibres actually branch exactly at acupuncture points. Scientists don’t know exactly what role C fibres play in the nervous system, but Dr. Silverstein theorizes that the bundle of nerves exists to maintain arousal or wakefulness. The insertion of the acupuncture needle disrupts this circuit and numbs our sensitivity to pain.”

Russian researchers in 1991 at The Institute for Clinical and Experimental Medicine in Novosibirsk, USSR, in a research project lasting several years, discovered how the human body conducts light. They found that the light conducting ability of the human body exists only along the meridians, and can enter and exit only along the acupuncture points. Dr. Kaznachejew, a professor of physics said:

“This seems to prove that we have a light transferal system in our body somewhat likeoptical fiber. It appears that the light can even travel when the light canal is bent, or totally twisted. The light appears to be reflected from the inner surface, appearing to go in some sort of zigzag track. You can explain this through traditional electromagnetic light theory as it is used in optical fiber communications.”

This finding has been confirmed by a 1992 study in the Journal of Traditional Chinese Medicine and a 2005 study in the Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine where moxibustion and infrared thermography were used to trace meridian pathways.

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Acupuncture for Caesarean Prevention and Healthy Delivery

Given the generous litigation latitude in Kentucky that is driving competent OBGYNs out of the state and preventing Midwifes from practicing in it at all, I doubt we will see acupuncturists in the hospital delivery room here anytime soon. With an unpublished C-section rate of 40% in one of our area hospitals and a total disdain for natural childbirth from many staff members (I have actually heard comments such as "there is nothing natural about natural childbirth" and "you have to push harder, I don't have all day"), I abhor having to tell moms to be that I can't help them out with pain management on the special day. With hope, there will be more advocates like Debra Betts who can help women have safe, healthy childbirth without having to go under the knife.

Oct 09, 2009 03:30 ET

Studies Show That Acupuncture Decreases Caesarean Rates

Acubalance Wellness Centre of Vancouver presents Debra Betts, an international expert, educator and author of the Essential Acupuncture for Pregnancy and Childbirth.

There are more and more studies showing that acupuncture can decrease the rates of caesarean delivery. This fits right into the new campaign launched by the Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists of Canada (SOGC) to 'normalize' childbirth and reduce Canada's soaring caesarean section rate."

The SOGC claims 20% fewer caesarean sections could be performed if doctors and hospitals followed guidelines aimed at lowering unnecessary surgeries and if women had support during labour.

Studies have shown that women receiving prebirth acupuncture compared to a control group had:

- An overall 35% reduction in the number of inductions (for women having their first baby this was a 43% reduction)

- A 31% reduction in the epidural rate

- A 32% reduction in emergency caesarean delivery

Breech birth, where the baby is delivering bottom-first rather than head first, is one area under scrutiny by the SOGC. They say that women should have an option to deliver vaginally with a breech presentation rather than have an automatic caesarean delivery. Moxibustion, an ancient Chinese treatment that involves heating acupuncture points with the Chinese herb called mugwort, has been used to turn breech babies for centuries. A study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association showed that, at 35 weeks gestation, 75.4% of the babies in the intervention group (whose mothers had received moxibustion) had changed to a head-down position versus 47.7% in the control group.

According to Betts, acupuncture during pregnancy helps numerous conditions, including: nausea, high blood pressure, back pain and cervical ripening (which helps shorten labour), and can naturally induce labour.

One thing that Betts is particularly excited about teaching is acupressure for pain management during labour. "We know that if women can manage their pain there is less drugs, less intervention and far fewer C sections." says Betts. "What's important is that these acupressure points are easy to use, can be used at the beginning of labour by the support people, and that there are consistent effects. From my own clinical followup, 86% used it successfully in labour to significantly reduce their pain."

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Acupuncture Use in the United States

I have often joked that it takes 18 months for someone who says they are interested in trying acupuncture to actually go through with it. Unfortunately this is often after an occasional stiffness and twinge in the back has tuned into a chronic and severe pain both limiting mobility and requiring hydrocodone four times a day. The following was published a couple of years ago but I find the data relevant in my practice. I am certainly getting more physician referrals as they hear their patients tell them about success with musculoskeletal pain. Natural seems to be in. With the surge of natural prescription medications like Loveza (omega-3s) and Florastore (probiotic), I am waiting for shan zha and chuan xiong to be marketed by Pfizer!

Acupuncture use in the United States: findings from the National Health Interview Survey.

Burke A, Upchurch DM, Dye C, Chyu L.

Institute for Holistic Healing Studies, San Francisco State University, San Francisco, CA 94132, USA. aburke@sfsu.edu

OBJECTIVE: Acupuncture has become an important provider-based complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) treatment. To improve understanding of its role in personal health care, an analysis of national data was conducted to examine user sociodemographics, conditions treated, and the relationship of use with conventional Western medical care.

DESIGN: A nationally representative cross-sectional survey.

SETTING: The 2002 National Health Interview Survey (NHIS), conducted in all 50 states and the District of Columbia.

PARTICIPANTS: Thirty-one-thousand and forty-four (31,044) adults who completed the NHIS Sample Adult Core.

OUTCOME MEASURES: The primary outcome measure was recent use of acupuncture, defined as use within the previous 12 months.

RESULTS: In the 2002 NHIS sample, 4.1% of the respondents reported lifetime use, and 1.1% (representing 2.13 million Americans) reported recent use of acupuncture. Recent use (n = 327) was positively associated with being an Asian female, living in the West or Northeast, having poorer self-reported health status, a higher level of education, and being an ex-smoker. Among recent users, the most typical treatment regimen was two to four treatments (34.5%), with musculoskeletal complaints being the most frequently reported conditions, led by back pain (34.0%). Reports of perceived benefit were generally high. Respondents indicated that acupuncture was used both as an alternative and as a complementary therapy. A reasonable number also reported being referred to acupuncture by a conventional medical professional (25.3%). The cross-sectional nature of the data precluded analysis of transitions in health care use (between conventional and CAM treatments) over time.

CONCLUSIONS: Utilization of acupuncture was somewhat lower than expected given its significant national and international recognition and its visibility in the media. This may in part be a function of provider availability and cultural factors.

Fibromyalgia: Traditional vs Sham Acupuncture Success

In the past year there have been several studies that confirm acupuncture is more effective for back pain than the typical lortab, physical therapy, epidural, and surgery regimen touted by western pain management specialists. The studies included a fake or "sham" acupuncture treatment group along with a real or "traditional" acupuncture treatment group. The problem with these designs was the lack of studies comparing traditional and sham acupuncture. When the results of the studies showed statistically insignificant difference in effectiveness, the conclusions make the reader think all you have to do is stick some needles randomly in your back, not necessarily by a qualified acupuncturist, and the placebo effect will take over from there. The following abstract was pulled from Pub Med and discusses the short and long term effects of traditional acupuncture on pain receptors in the brain for fibromyalgia.

Traditional Chinese acupuncture and placebo (sham) acupuncture are differentiated by their effects on mu-opioid receptors (MORs).

Department of Anesthesiology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA. reharris@med.umich.edu

Controversy remains regarding the mechanisms of acupuncture analgesia. A prevailing theory, largely unproven in humans, is that it involves the activation of endogenous opioid antinociceptive systems and mu-opioid receptors (MORs). This is also a neurotransmitter system that mediates the effects of placebo-induced analgesia. This overlap in potential mechanisms may explain the lack of differentiation between traditional acupuncture and either non-traditional or sham acupuncture in multiple controlled clinical trials. We compared both short- and long-term effects of traditional Chinese acupuncture (TA) versus sham acupuncture (SA) treatment on in vivo MOR binding availability in chronic pain patients diagnosed with fibromyalgia (FM). Patients were randomized to receive either TA or SA treatment over the course of 4 weeks. Positron emission tomography (PET) with (11)C-carfentanil was performed once during the first treatment session and then repeated a month later following the eighth treatment. Acupuncture therapy evoked short-term increases in MOR binding potential, in multiple pain and sensory processing regions including the cingulate (dorsal and subgenual), insula, caudate, thalamus, and amygdala. Acupuncture therapy also evoked long-term increases in MOR binding potential in some of the same structures including the cingulate (dorsal and perigenual), caudate, and amygdala. These short- and long-term effects were absent in the sham group where small reductions were observed, an effect more consistent with previous placebo PET studies. Long-term increases in MOR BP following TA were also associated with greater reductions in clinical pain. These findings suggest that divergent MOR processes may mediate clinically relevant analgesic effects for acupuncture and sham acupuncture.

Boost your immunity and fight off the flu before it fights you!

With concern over the effectiveness and availability of the H1N1 and influenza immunizations, the best treatment to combat these viruses is prevention. Throughout the flu season, September-March, Jing Acupuncture is offering $25 acupuncture sessions designed to help keep you healthy through the fall and winter. It is the perfect introduction for those curious to learn about the benefits of acupuncture and for acupuncture veterans to have a mini-treatment added on to a regular session.

Don't forget to follow these tips:

Practice good hand hygiene by washing your hands with soap and water, especially after coughing and sneezing. Alcohol based hand cleaners are also effective but can be a bit harsh to the skin. Bath and Body Works has an excellent alcohol-free spray hand sanitizer that I love.

Practice respiratory etiquette by covering your mouth and nose with a tissue when you cough or sneeze. Avoid touching your eyes, nose, or mouth; germs are spread this way.

Know the signs and symptoms of the flu. A fever is a temperature that is equal to or greater than 100 degrees Fahrenheit. Look for signs of a fever if the person feels very warm, has a flushed appearance, or is sweating or shivering. Remember, if there is no fever, there is no flu!

Stay home if you have flu or flu like symptoms for at least 24 hours after you no longer have a fever; this should be determined without the use of fever reducing medications (medications that contain acetaminophen or ibuprofen). This is hard for a lot of people who feel they need to "fight through it," but taking the day off and getting good rest, hydration, and nourishment will not only speed your recovery, but will keep you from spreading your illness to friends, family, and colleges.

Acupuncture and Cancer

A couple of new studies have appeared concerning the effect of acupuncture treatment on breast cancer, ovarian cancer, and side effects of radiation or chemotherapy treatment. I am happy more of the studies are looking not just at sham acupuncture vs. real acupuncture vs. no acupuncture, but actually looking at the longevity of the therapies used. Here are a couple of abstracts:

Breast Cancer; New breast cancer research from J. Hervik and colleagues discussed

In a prospective, controlled trial, 59 women suffering from hot flashes following breast cancer surgery and adjuvant oestrogen-antagonist treatment (Tamoxifen) were randomized to either 10 weeks of traditional Chinese acupuncture or shamacupuncture (SA). Mean number of hot flashes at day and night were recorded prior to treatment, during the treatment period as well as during the 12 weeks following treatment. A validated health score (Kupperman index) was conducted at baseline, at the end of the treatment period and at 12 weeks following treatment. During the treatment period mean number of hot flashes at day and night was significantly reduced by 50 and almost 60%, respectively from baseline in the acupuncture group, and was further reduced by 30% both at day and night during the next 12 weeks. In the sham acupuncture group a significant reduction of 25% in hot flashes at day was seen during treatment, but was reversed during the following 12 weeks. The researchers concluded: "This treatment effect seems to coincide with a general health improvement measured with the validated Kupperman index."

Hervik and colleagues published the results of their research in Breast Cancer Research and Treatment (Acupuncture for the treatment of hot flashes in breast cancer patients, a randomized, controlled trial. Breast Cancer Research and Treatment, 2009;116(2):311-316).

Ovarian Cancer; New ovarian cancer research from W.D. Lu and colleagues discussed

A standardized acupuncture protocol was employed with manual and electrostimulation. The frequency of treatment was 2-3 times per week for a total of 10 sessions, starting 1 week before the second cycle of chemotherapy. The setting was two outpatient academic centers for patients with cancer. Twenty-one (21) newly diagnosed and recurrent ovarian cancer patients were the subjects. WBC count, ANC, and plasma granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (G-CSF) were assessed weekly. The median leukocyte value in the acupuncture arm at the first day of the third cycle of chemotherapy was significantly higher than in the control arm after adjusting for baseline value (8600 cells/mu L, range: 4800 12,000 versus 4400 cell/mu L, range: 2300-10,000) (p=0.046). The incidence of grade 2-4 leukopenia was less in the acupuncture arm than in the sham arm (30% versus 90%; p=0.02). However, the median leukocyte nadir, neutrophil nadir, and recovering ANC were all higher but not statistically significantly different (p=0.116-0.16), after adjusting for baseline differences. The researchers concluded: "A larger trial is warranted to more definitively determine the efficacy of acupuncture on clinically important outcomes of chemotherapy-induced neutropenia.."

Lu and colleagues published their study in the Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine (Acupuncture for Chemotherapy-Induced Neutropenia in Patients with Gynecologic Malignancies: A Pilot Randomized, Sham-Controlled Clinical Trial. Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine, 2009;15(7):745-753).

OT: Husband's Book is Available for Pre-Order!!!

Sometimes I need to discuss life beyond Acupuncture News:

When I met my husband, he had just come back from Iraq and started falling into the PTSD patterns of behavior including lots of eating and drinking to "feed the soul hole." He was one of the most influential military bloggers while he was over there and loved being a solider but when he came back he lost himself.

One of his therapies on the road to recovery was to put the experience in writing. After a few years of trying to find a publisher and hearing "the Iraq market is saturated" or "it isn't political, you have to make it more anti-war/Bush" or "not enough combat and pro-military content," the book is finally going to come out this year in November. I am so proud of this story and his coming out about his experiences with PTSD which will hopefully show that average guys in stressful situations are allowed to ask for help when things fall apart.

Here is some more about the book and the publisher:
hellgatepress.com/display_book.php?id=84

It is defiantly a feel good memoir that provides insight into a soldier's experience sans political ramblings one way or another. So for readers on your Christmas list . . . .