Acupuncture: Pinpointing Pain

Millions of Americans now use acupuncture each year, moving the ancient practice away from the fringe and into the mainstream of Western medicine.

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) Consensus Statement on Acupuncture says that the practice has shown promising results for headache, low-back pain, fibromyalgia, menstrual cramps, and postoperative dental pain. The report also says that acupuncture may work for nausea associated with anesthesia, pregnancy, and chemotherapy. A study reported in the Annals of Internal Medicine in late 2004 found that acupuncture relieves pain and improves function for patients with osteoarthritis of the knee.

How acupuncture works is a bit tough to explain without using such terms as "chi" and "ying and yang." But Dr. Marshall Sager, a physician who practices acupuncture as well as other forms of Eastern medicine in the Philadelphia suburbs, says acupuncture is best described as "enhancing the body's inherent ability to heal itself."

To effect that healing, an acupuncturist will place 3 to 15 very fine needles in various spots on your body (don't worry, it rarely hurts) about once a week until the symptoms fade. The needles are either medically sterilized or are one-time-use-only.

For best results, always use a licensed acupuncturist. The Web site of the American Academy of Medical Acupuncture, www.medicalacupuncture.org, lists physicians who are trained in the practice. The U.S. has nearly 8,000 physicians with acupuncture training and there are 18,000 licensed non-physician acupuncturists. You can also get more information about other credible acupuncture accreditations and licensing organizations at the NIH’s Directory of Health Organizations, online at http://dirline.nlm.nih.gov.