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Considerations for Acupuncture
Generally speaking, the place to begin to search for good acupuncture treatment is in the office of your primary-care physician. It is important to determine what is causing your pain and to rule out causes for the pain that can better be treated using allopathic (traditional Western) methods.
It is also a good idea to know something about acupuncture before seeking treatment. There are three basic styles of acupuncture: Chinese, Japanese, and Korean. In all three, hair-thin needles about 3 to 4 inches in length are placed in the skin at various points. Chinese acupuncture needles are a little heavier and placed slightly deeper in the skin; sometimes a weak electrical current is applied to the needles. Japanese acupuncture needles are held on the surface of the skin. Korean needles are applied only to specific points on the hands. Practitioners may naturally believe in their particular tradition, but there does not seem to be much difference in efficacy; the Japanese method seems to produce results slightly more slowly and less dramatically.
Physicians are not certain how or why acupuncture works. Doctors trained in the Western medical model believe that acupuncture stimulates the release of endorphins, the body's natural painkillers, and of natural anti-inflammatory agents. Oriental medical doctors (OMDs) believe that acupuncture restores the normal flow of energy, called Qi, throughout the body. Allopathic medical practitioners also admit that they often get good results with traditional therapies without understanding why they work. Some researchers estimate that as many as 70% of successful allopathic therapies are not backed by research.
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