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The Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Pain Medicine earlier this year revealed data which showed that acupuncture seems to stimulate neuropeptide release, which in turn may have a significant impact on the treatment regimens used to treat chronic pain.
Modern tools of medicine such as molecular assays and brain imaging were used to study the effects of that ancient art, acupuncture. But this is not to say that the utility of acupuncture is not already known.
In fact, the World Health Organization lists over 40 functional disorders successfully treated with acupuncture.
Obviously, pain is a subjective complaint, as we must rely on the individual who experiences it to express its severity, its quality and its frequency. However, there can be objective conclusions derived by monitoring functional outcomes
This meeting also featured programs on so-called "electroacupuncture", whereby skin electrodes are used in place of needles. Even better, there is now available a handheld unit which can be carried in one's pocket: Strategically applied, this small unit is able to reduce surgical pain, and help drug addicts lessen cravings during detoxification.
It has been shown that skin electrodes work as well or better than needles, as pleasant sensations are produced resulting in the relief of endorphins. Brain functions are regulated by such chemical messengers, including neurotransmitters and neuropeptides. Acupuncture or electrical stimulation of certain frequencies when applied to certain body sites can facilitate the release of specific neuropeptides in the central nervous system: The result can be profound in terms of physiologic effects, and in terms of the activation of self-healing mechanisms.
Further investigation of the types of conditions which elicit a specific neurobiological response could have vast clinical implications. Clinical studies have shown the importance of acupuncture, and the more scientists learn of the mechanisms of relief, hopefully more individuals will undergo acupuncture treatments.
A recent study published in Arthritis and Rheumatism evaluated acupuncture's effect on chronic pain due to osteoarthritis of the knee or hip. The researchers measured the severity of the joint disease and the patient's assessment of quality of life. Interestingly, both of these aspects of chronic pain were significantly improvedwith the addition of acupuncture. And these positive effects lasted about six months.
It would be wonderful to reach in one's pocket and apply that handheld unit to what-ever body part might be ailing a person at a particular time. Why, it might even replace the Pocket Rocket as the vehicle of choice along the pain-pleasure continuum.
