Editorial: What's In A Title

No matter what your opinion of western allopathic medicine, no one can deny that medical school takes a great deal of drive, personal determination, and a large chunk of one’s twenties. Doctors sweat out a large portion of their youth in the troughs of sleep deprivation, condemnation from their superiors, and rigorous study in the hopes of providing a humanitarian service . . . and paying back their student loans. Whether the M.D. becomes a virtuous practitioner, or a money-grubbing autocrat, they all had to earn those initials.Oriental Medicine training is tough. Most of us come from a western medical background and leaning TCM theories, acupuncture points, herbs, and all of the other modalities does not come easily. Those of us who have gone through the formal, master’s education route and...

Incongruity

Headlines are supposed to tell you the cut-and-chase of an article in a single phrase. I find the following one amusing because, while the headline implies that acupuncture doesn't work, the text demonstrates that the evidence is merely inconclusive due to the poor organization and follow-through of the cited studies. The headline should have read something like Efficacy of Acupuncture Uncertain in Stroke Patients or Evidence of Acupuncture Effectiveness Inconclusive for Treating Stroke. Of course, the study's intent was to find if acupuncture is the "most effective for improving stroke patients' rehabilitation" yet there was no mention of a control group or what the other "best" methods might be. Curious, no?Reported July 27, 2006Acupuncture Lacks Evidence, Say Researchers(Ivanhoe Newswire)...

Seminar Style: Mary Elizabeth Wakefield Part II

One of the shortcomings of many Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) schools is that they are often accused of teaching Traditional “Communist” Medicine. This is because, unlike 5-Element institutions, they tend to overlook the mental, emotional, and spiritual aspects of acupuncture. Whereas in Western Medicine, diabetes is diabetes no matter who your physician is or what school he went to, diagnosis and treatment with acupuncture depends largely on where you studied and the modality you prefer. Although my TCM program did explore 5-element theory in addition to other systems, they were not the emphasis. That is why today’s session was such a pleasure – it was a review made new.Mary Elizabeth opened with an informative Q&A period that could have gone on all day had she allowed it. She introduced...

Seminar Style: Mary Elizabeth Wakefield Part I

From Eden Park B&B in Takoma Park, MD: It is going to take a while to assimilate all of the information I have learned in day one of Mary Elizabeth Wakefield's Constitutional Facial Acupuncture Renewal. After meeting a fellow TCM practitioner from California at the airport last night (4 hours later than expected due to monsoon style thunder and lightning), and hoofing it almost 1.5 miles in the heat and humidity to the seminar, I found myself in a room of local Tai Sopheia trained 5-Element practitioners. Needless to say, I felt a little bit out of my "element." However, that quickly changed when Mary Elizabeth introduced herself and began speaking about her acupuncture facial rejuvination techniques.Contrary to popular belief, acupuncture facial rejuvination (and don't you dare call it...

The Future of Hospital Care

Every year, many schools of Traditional Chinese Medicine offer internships to several different hospitals in China where students and practitioners can do intensive study of acupuncture, herbal therapy, Tui Na, or medical Qi Gong and Tai Chi. It is a system designed to allow doctors to find the best treatments for their patients and collaborate closely with other physicians. Imagine such an intergration in a US hospital, where patients have the option of receiving alternative therapies to augment their allopathic treatment. How useful would this be to so many lying in hospital beds who are suffering from post-of pain, undergoing cancer treatment, detoxing off alcohol or drugs, or simply having trouble going to sleep in an inherently bustling environment? It is beginning to become a reality,...

Neck Pain

One of the major limitations with most acupuncture research is the small sample size - so many of the studies just meet the minimum 30 participants to make the study statistically significant. Fortunately, there is no shortage of people suffering with neck pain and willing to volunteer. Here is a quick survey study of recent research findings.From The Scotsman Wed 19 July 2006Study proves acupuncture can aid neck pain and stiffnessACUPUNCTURE is effective in helping people suffering neck pain, a review of evidence has concluded.Some sceptics have claimed any benefit from using the technique is down to a patient's expectation that the treatment will work - a placebo effect.Now a group of researchers has analysed ten trials, with a total of 661 patients, which investigated whether acupuncture...

Today, Its Official!

I post a lot about this, but I cannot help but be excited over the validation of my profession in this state . . . especially since we, thankfully, are not the last one to pass a regulatory law!Acupuncture now regulated health care in KentuckyAssociated PressLEXINGTON, Ky. - Thousands of years after the Chinese invented the procedure and three decades after states first began overseeing its practice, Kentucky is making acupuncture a regulated form of medical care.Beginning next year acupuncturists in Kentucky who want to practice the art of sticking hairlike needles into various pressure points around the body to relieve pain will have to be certified.The law - which Gov. Ernie Fletcher signed on April 26 - went into effect on Saturday.The regulations will require acupuncturists who want to...

Verification Optional

I was ordering from an acupuncture supply company today and I was bothered by something during check-out. Unlike many herbal suppliers, such as Crane Herbs or Kan, several distributors of needle, moxabustion, and Electro Therapy products, including Acu-Market and Lhasa OMS, do not require license verification before allowing you to buy. I merely had to check boxes stating that I legally met the criteria to purchase such products, but there was no process to ensure I was who I claimed to be. By making professional products easily available to the public, it can encourage quack practitioners and lead to dangerous experimentation, particularly with those companies that sell herbal formulas. Of course they have the usual "hold-harmless-no-medical-claims-intended-the-herbs-are-just-food-supplements"...

Cupping with Fire

Since my first lesson, I have been a big fan of fire cupping. It is powerful, dramatic, and can leave marks that may have friends lifting eyebrows and inquiring if everything is okay at home. While most of the press dedicated to cupping focuses on it's use for pain management, I have to interject it is a first-rate modality for preventing the progression of a cold. At the first sniffle or scratch in the throat, I reach for the plum-blossom hammer, my fire cups, some Po sum On oil and my jade Gua Sha stone. These tools can knock out a wind-cold invasion before it has a chance to knock the client out. Not to mention, it feels really good. I have found that while they can be cumbersome, glass cupping is the most versatile as you can perform multiple techniques that are impossible with plastic...

And the Research Continues

From the Boston ChannelAcupuncture may help knee pain more than taking anti-inflammatory drugs, according to new researchers.Researchers studied 1,000 patients with osteoarthritis in the knee. Twenty-nine percent of those who had medication and physical therapy for six weeks reported less pain, compared to 53 percent of those who had acupuncture reporting less pain.Fifty-one percent of those who had a placebo form of acupuncture also said their pain had decreased. It's possible, experts said, that just thinking a treatment may work will actually alleviate pain.From the Annals of Internal MedicineWhat is the problem and what is known about it so far?Knee osteoarthritis is a common condition in which changes in the knee joints lead to pain. Treatments include drugs to decrease pain and inflammation;...