OT: Acupuncture May Be Useful for Migraines

[Guest guest]

I can vouch for that. I've been having accupuncture sessions since

April to treat my anxiety and depression and it has made all the

different in the world. Together with the Chinese herbs I've been

given, it is very relaxing and has been a big help in reducing my

attacks. It is also covered under my insurance.

 

Michele Madison Robles

Danaomi Scents

P.O. Box 1073

Huntington Beach, CA 92647

 

 

, Butch Owen <butchbsi@s...>

wrote:

> Acupuncture May Be Useful for Migraines

> Thursday, May 05, 2005

> By Salynn Boyles

>

> http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,155522,00.html

>

> Study after study has shown acupuncture to be effective in treating

a

> host of different ailments, but new research is raising questions

about

> why the ancient Chinese practice works.

>

> Patients in the study suffering from frequent migraine headaches got

> better when treated with acupuncture. But acupuncture was found to

be no

> more effective than so-called " sham " treatment, in which acupuncture

> needles were placed in areas of the body that are not believed to be

> active acupuncture points.

>

> " The theory that acupuncture works because the needles are placed in

> very specific spots hasn't been proven to be the case in this

study, "

> researchers Klaus Linde, MD, tells WebMD. " It may make a difference

for

> other conditions like osteoarthritis, but for migraines it doesn't

seem

> to matter where the needles are placed. "

>

> In both groups the average number days per month with moderate to

severe

> headaches declined from roughly five to three.

>

> The new study is published in the May 4 issue of The Journal of the

> American Medical Association.

>

> Ancient and Modern Theories

>

> According to traditional Chinese belief, acupuncture targets a life

> force known as qi (pronounced " chee " ), usually described as the

normal

> functional energy associated with all living processes. It is

thought

> that more than 200 specific acupuncture points exist along the

pathway

> in which this energy must travel for good health. Imbalances in this

> vital life energy are said to result in disease.

>

> The view of Western medicine is somewhat different. Modern science

> professes that acupuncture needles may stimulate nerves, altering

> messages from the brain and spinal cord. Acupuncture treatment is

> believed to promote the release of endorphins — the body's natural

pain

> relievers — and other neurotransmitters like serotonin.

>

> In the newly reported study, researchers from Munich, Germany's

Center

> for Complementary Medicine Research randomly assigned 302 patients

who

> suffered from frequent migraine headaches to receive either

traditional

> acupuncture, " sham " acupuncture, or no acupuncture at all.

>

> Both acupuncture groups underwent 12 sessions over eight weeks, and

both

> groups reported the same decline in moderate or severe headache

days in

> the month after the treatment ended. Roughly half of all patients

who

> received acupuncture treatment reported at least a 50 percent

reduction

> in headache days, compared with 15 percent of the nonacupuncture

patients.

>

> Treatment Not a Sham

>

> The study is not the first to find " sham " acupuncture to be as

effective

> as the real thing. While it is not clear why, Linde says there are

> probably both physical and psychological factors involved.

>

> It has been suggested that hands-on therapies that involve

repetitive

> stimuli like acupuncture and massage can alter the perception of

pain.

>

> The benefits may also be derived from the patient's belief that

> acupuncture works — the so-called " placebo effect " — and the ritual

> associated with treatment, Linde says.

>

> Acupuncture expert Peter Wayne, PhD, says the impact of the hands-on

> interaction between the patient and the acupuncture provider can't

be

> underestimated. Most acupuncture sessions take around 30 minutes,

far

> longer than the average patient sees a doctor during a routine

office visit.

>

> Wayne is research director of the New England School of Acupuncture

in

> Watertown, Mass.

>

> " There are some very creative studies under way right now examining

the

> effect of the interaction between patients and their

practitioners, " he

> tells WebMD. " In conventional medicine the time spent with a doctor

is

> getting shorter and shorter, and we don't really understand the

> implications of this. "

>

> By Salynn Boyles, reviewed by Brunilda Nazario, MD

>

> SOURCES: Linde, K.The Journal of the American Medical Association,

May

> 4, 2005; vol 293: pp 2118-2125. Klaus Linde, MD, Center for

> Complementary Medicine Research, Technische University, Munich,

Germany.

> Peter Wayne, PhD, director of research, New England School of

> Acupuncture, Watertown, Mass.

>

> Copyright 2005 FOX News Network, LLC. All rights reserved.

[Guest guest]

Acupuncture May Be Useful for Migraines

Thursday, May 05, 2005

By Salynn Boyles

 

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,155522,00.html

 

Study after study has shown acupuncture to be effective in treating a

host of different ailments, but new research is raising questions about

why the ancient Chinese practice works.

 

Patients in the study suffering from frequent migraine headaches got

better when treated with acupuncture. But acupuncture was found to be no

more effective than so-called " sham " treatment, in which acupuncture

needles were placed in areas of the body that are not believed to be

active acupuncture points.

 

" The theory that acupuncture works because the needles are placed in

very specific spots hasn't been proven to be the case in this study, "

researchers Klaus Linde, MD, tells WebMD. " It may make a difference for

other conditions like osteoarthritis, but for migraines it doesn't seem

to matter where the needles are placed. "

 

In both groups the average number days per month with moderate to severe

headaches declined from roughly five to three.

 

The new study is published in the May 4 issue of The Journal of the

American Medical Association.

 

Ancient and Modern Theories

 

According to traditional Chinese belief, acupuncture targets a life

force known as qi (pronounced " chee " ), usually described as the normal

functional energy associated with all living processes. It is thought

that more than 200 specific acupuncture points exist along the pathway

in which this energy must travel for good health. Imbalances in this

vital life energy are said to result in disease.

 

The view of Western medicine is somewhat different. Modern science

professes that acupuncture needles may stimulate nerves, altering

messages from the brain and spinal cord. Acupuncture treatment is

believed to promote the release of endorphins — the body's natural pain

relievers — and other neurotransmitters like serotonin.

 

In the newly reported study, researchers from Munich, Germany's Center

for Complementary Medicine Research randomly assigned 302 patients who

suffered from frequent migraine headaches to receive either traditional

acupuncture, " sham " acupuncture, or no acupuncture at all.

 

Both acupuncture groups underwent 12 sessions over eight weeks, and both

groups reported the same decline in moderate or severe headache days in

the month after the treatment ended. Roughly half of all patients who

received acupuncture treatment reported at least a 50 percent reduction

in headache days, compared with 15 percent of the nonacupuncture patients.

 

Treatment Not a Sham

 

The study is not the first to find " sham " acupuncture to be as effective

as the real thing. While it is not clear why, Linde says there are

probably both physical and psychological factors involved.

 

It has been suggested that hands-on therapies that involve repetitive

stimuli like acupuncture and massage can alter the perception of pain.

 

The benefits may also be derived from the patient's belief that

acupuncture works — the so-called " placebo effect " — and the ritual

associated with treatment, Linde says.

 

Acupuncture expert Peter Wayne, PhD, says the impact of the hands-on

interaction between the patient and the acupuncture provider can't be

underestimated. Most acupuncture sessions take around 30 minutes, far

longer than the average patient sees a doctor during a routine office visit.

 

Wayne is research director of the New England School of Acupuncture in

Watertown, Mass.

 

" There are some very creative studies under way right now examining the

effect of the interaction between patients and their practitioners, " he

tells WebMD. " In conventional medicine the time spent with a doctor is

getting shorter and shorter, and we don't really understand the

implications of this. "

 

By Salynn Boyles, reviewed by Brunilda Nazario, MD

 

SOURCES: Linde, K.The Journal of the American Medical Association, May

4, 2005; vol 293: pp 2118-2125. Klaus Linde, MD, Center for

Complementary Medicine Research, Technische University, Munich, Germany.

Peter Wayne, PhD, director of research, New England School of

Acupuncture, Watertown, Mass.

 

Copyright 2005 FOX News Network, LLC. All rights reserved.