Arthritis

Acupuncture has been used to relieve the pain of arthritis in traditional Chinese medicine for many thousands of years. Arthritis pain relief is now amongst one of the most common reasons for using acupuncture in the West.

How does acupuncture help arthritic pain?

(1) The Traditional Chinese View

Traditional Chinese medicine is based on the belief that the body’s energy (Qi) flows through channels called meridians. These meridians are like rivers that irrigate the body and nourish the muscles. Any obstruction along these meridians affects the flow of Qi, blocking the flow, and causing pain. Acupuncture needles are inserted along the meridians to release the energy and relieve the pain.

(2) The Western view

Western research has focused on the effects of inserting acupuncture needles into the body. Science has proven that the stimulation of skin tissue/muscles in certain places when a fine needle is inserted results in the release of large amounts of endorphins and bradykinins. These are the body’s natural pain killers and anti-inflammatory agents. Acupuncture is able to relieve pain and suppress inflammation.

Research into Osteoarthritis:

A major study of the effect of acupuncture on osteoarthritis of the knee has found it can both relieve pain and improve movement.

The US National Institutes of Health study concludes acupuncture is an effective complement to standard care. Acupuncture patients showed a 40% decrease in pain, and a nearly 40% improvement in knee function.

The patients who took part in the study received either acupuncture, sham acupuncture or guidance on self-help, alongside standard drug treatment. Sham acupuncture is a procedure designed to prevent patients from being able to detect if needles are actually inserted at treatment points.

Researcher Dr Stephen Strauss, director of the US National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine, said: "For the first time, a clinical trial with sufficient rigour, size, and duration has shown that acupuncture reduces the pain and functional impairment of osteoarthritis of the knee. "These results also indicate that acupuncture can serve as an effective addition to a standard regimen of care and improve quality of life for knee osteoarthritis sufferers."

By eight weeks into the study, the acupuncture patients were showing a significant improvement in knee function, and by 14 weeks their pain levels had dropped sharply compared with the sham acupuncture and self-help groups. Dr Madeleine Devey, of the Arthritis Research Campaign, said: "It is extremely encouraging to see a well conducted clinical trial on a complementary therapy for OA that demonstrates a positive effect. Of course these therapies, which appear to alleviate pain and thus improve mobility and function, do not cure or prevent OA, but nevertheless they are a very useful adjunct to other therapies and probably much less damaging than non steroidal anti-inflammatories."

Research into Rheumatoid Arthritis:

There are several studies suggesting that acupuncture can be very helpful in the treatment of arthritis.

A recent study in Russia found that 73% of patients suffering from Ankylosing Spondylitis benefitted from acupuncture treatment. A study of auriculo-electropuncture (AEP) - treatment of points on the ear - by a double blind method was conducted in Russia with 16 arthrits patients. Not only did they all feel better as a result of the treatment but they all showed "statistically significant" improvement in blood samples.

Traditional acupuncturists treat the whole person rather than a disease and therefore attempt to get to the root cause of the problem rather than treating the symptoms and, like other holistic practitioners, will consider all lifestyle and environmental factors before commencing treatment. Controlled medical studies indicate that acupuncture is an appropriate therapy to adopt in holistic treatment of Arthritis.