Medical Acupuncture

Traditional acupuncture, derived from traditional Chinese medicine, is based on a belief system in which illness is seen as an imbalance of Qi energy in the body, and acupuncture is used to restore the equilibrium, by means of meridians, elements, and so on. 

In Western medical acupuncture, your diagnosis is made in the same way as a healthcare professional would, in conventional medical terms, and needles are used to influence the physiology of the body according to current scientific understanding. It is more limited than traditional Chinese acupuncture as the techniques involved in Western medical acupuncture are based on scientific evidence. Medical acupuncture considers needling as a conventional treatment alongside medications and surgery, and practice changes as evidence emerges. 

Medical acupuncture does not wholly dismiss the 2000-year long history of traditional Chinese acupuncture; it is considered an important part of medicine’s history. However, Western medical acupuncture respects the techniques used in traditional medicine, aligning them with the current understanding of physiology and pathology of present-day medicine, and evolving as new clinical data arises.  

Medical acupuncture takes an ancient therapy and interprets it through evidence-based practice from the viewpoint of conventional medicine. It works by stimulating sensory nerves, those responsible for sensations such as touch, pressure, stretch, and pain, and has been developed using established neurophysiological theory. 

This might not mean every individual will respond to medical acupuncture – as with any treatment, conventional or otherwise, our individual response is based on our own physiological make-up. Some are strong responders; some do not respond at all. However, acupuncture is acknowledged as a valid therapy, has NICE guidance for specific conditions, and is used alongside conventional medications, surgery, and physical therapy. Its effectiveness can be demonstrated by the increase in popularity of acupuncture in mainstream medicine.

There are local, segmental, and general effects caused by acupuncture. 

Locally… 

Sensory nerves found in your skin and muscle are stimulated by the needles, increasing blood flow to the area and releasing neuropeptides to support healing.

Segmentally… 

When an area of skin or muscle that shares a nerve supply with a painful area is needled, the spinal cord’s dorsal horn at that nerve’s level is stimulated, which can dampen the pain, similar to ‘pain-gating’ seen in TENS therapy. 

Generally… 

Your body can produce its own pain relief, by releasing chemicals such as beta-endorphins, enkephalin, serotonin, and noradrenaline – needling triggers this release and activates natural pain control via descending modulatory pain systems. 

But what else? 

The experience of receiving acupuncture therapy in itself can make you calm, relaxed, and content – it switches off your limbic system’s activity and lowers your autonomic tone. This means acupuncture can not only help musculoskeletal conditions but also certain internal diseases, including overactive bladder and gynaecological conditions. Of course, attending your acupuncture appointment has plenty of non-specific effects that arise from taking time for yourself, to rest, to talk, and to receive hands-on therapy from an experienced practitioner. 

Yes. It is very safe and well-tolerated when performed by competent individuals, so appropriate training and regulation of practitioners is key in keeping acupuncture safe. It must be noted that it is still an invasive technique involving the piercing of the skin, which could lead to unintended puncturing of body parts. However, the needles used in acupuncture are solid with a fine, sharp point, which means they cause much less injury than the hollow and thicker needles used for injections. Only disposable surgical steel needles are used at Boda to reduce the risk of blood-borne diseases such as HIV and hepatitis B.

Although medical acupuncture is generally safe, there are some recognised possible complications: 

• Fainting 

This can happen during treatment if you have an empty stomach, or are particularly nervous, tense, or tired. If you are new to acupuncture or have a history of fainting, I’ll treat you whilst you are lying down comfortably on the treatment table and stay with you for the duration of the appointment. 

• Local infections 

This is a very rare complication, as medical acupuncture needles are solid and very fine, and I only use sterile, single use, disposable needles at the practice. I do not currently use indwelling needles in routine treatments at the practice 

• Pain 

Most of us don’t feel pain on insertion or removal of the needles, but some might feel a slight discomfort, especially if the area is already very tense or sore, or if you are anxious. You can move during treatment, but you may feel mild pain on movement, and so I try and make you as comfortable as possible on the treatment table before beginning to treat so you don’t need to move. If you find you are in pain during your treatment, please let me know immediately. 

• Injuries 

Literature reports that there have been cases of injury to internal organs, e.g., lung injury when needling the chest wall, but such complications are very rare. I am medically qualified, and my sound knowledge of anatomy greatly reduces this risk. 

[Information acquired from: Stux, G. and Pomeranz, B., 1998. Basics of Acupuncture. New York: Springer.] 

It shouldn’t, so please let me know if you’re in pain and I’ll address it immediately. 

Acupuncture needles can produce strange sensations, such as pins and needles, numbness, pinching, a dull ache, or muscle spasms. You may experience pain relief as soon as I remove the needles, the day after the treatment, or gradually accumulating over several sessions. Needling one area of the body may affect an entirely different area, and this is a technique regularly used in treatments. Some symptoms can be aggravated by acupuncture – please do not hesitate to notify me if so. 

You may see a general improvement in your well-being and sleeping habits after acupuncture, and sometimes individuals find that it brings about strong emotional reactions, such as crying, due to acupuncture’s effect on the nervous system. Note that you may experience some mild side effects after treatment, for example light-headedness, drowsiness, headache, or nausea.  

Sometimes, the needles may mark the skin or cause a pinpoint bleed or bruise at the site of insertion. This is normal and should settle soon after the appointment.