Dry Needling Trigger Points Helps Hip Arthritis

Dry needling is not necessarily acupuncture, but the technique does use acupuncture needles. Typically, an acupuncture needle is inserted into a myofascial trigger point.  In an article published in the Archives of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, the authors found that dry needling therapy in trigger points of the hip muscles reduced pain and improved hip muscle…

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Acupuncture vs Best Medical Therapy in Migraine Prevention

When compared to migraine medications, acupuncture seems to be a safe and effective first-line treatment in migraine headache care. ~ Dr. Broussard Acupuncture vs Best Medical Therapy in Episodic Migraine Prophylaxis March 24, 2021 Frontiers in Neurology TAKE-HOME MESSAGE The authors of this randomized clinical trial compared 12 treatments of acupuncture with best pharmacologic management…

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Electroacupuncture and Manual Acupuncture Can Be Recommended for Knee Osteoarthritis

In an interview with a medical doctor/PhD, a paper is discussed that shows that electrical and manual acupuncture outperformed a sham equivalent.  The authors said that the results of the paper suggest that acupuncture should be recommended as a potential therapy for knee osteoarthritis. ~ Dr. Broussard Cun-Zhi Liu, MD, PhD, on Acupuncture in Patients…

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Veteran’s Administration Evidence Map of Acupuncture

Many Veterans desire complementary and alternative medicine or integrative medicine modalities such as acupuncture, both for treatment and for the promotion of wellness. However, the effectiveness and adverse events associated with acupuncture are not firmly established. Given the VA’s desire to promote evidence-based practice, this evidence mapping project will help provide guidance to VA leadership…

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Pain: Considering Complementary Approaches (eBook)

US Department of Health and Human Services National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health Pain is the most common reason for seeking medical care. It is also a common reason why people turn to complementary health approaches. This 47-page eBook provides an overview of complementary health approaches for pain, including acupuncture, massage therapy, meditation, spinal…

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Acupuncture Helps Prevent Migraine Headaches Safely

A paper published in the journal Frontiers in Neurology, the authors reviewed the medical literature to assess how well acupuncture worked for the prevention of migraine headache compared to pharmacological treatment.  The authors concluded that there was moderate evidence that acupuncture is mildly more effective and much safer than medication for the prevention of migraine headaches. ~…

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Acupuncture for chronic nonspecific low back pain

The authors of this paper published in the Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews searched medical databases to find the effects of acupuncture for chronic lower back pain.  They found that acupuncture may relieve pain immediately after treatment, but the therapy may improve function immediately after sessions as well as physical but not mental quality of…

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Acupuncture Use BEFORE Surgery May Help Reduce Post-Operative Pain

In the journal Anesthesiology, Dr. Brinda Kirsh authored a paper that studied using two types of acupuncture before surgery.  She concluded that people using acupuncture BEFORE their surgical procedures, used less pain killers because they experienced less pain compared to standard procedures.  She said that this could lead to an effective, low cost, low risk…

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The Role of Acupuncture for Migraine Headache and Fibromyalgia

An article published in the journal Best Practice & Research: Clinical Anaesthesiology, found that based on the most recent evidence, migraine and fibromyalgia are two conditions with the most favorable outcomes after acupuncture. ~ Dr. Broussard The role of acupuncture in the treatment of chronic pain Best Pract Res Clin Anaesthesiol. 2020 Sep;34(3):603-616. doi: 10.1016/j.bpa.2020.08.005.…

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Sciatica Caused By Herniated Disc Helped By Acupuncture

In an article published in the journal Pain Medicine, the authors concluded that 12 sessions of acupuncture showed short-term clinical benefits in relieving the symptoms of leg pain for patients with chronic sciatica caused by disc problems compared with sham acupuncture. The also verified that acupuncture is safe in treating chronic sciatica caused by herniated discs. ~Dr.…

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