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Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ's)
About Acupuncture What is the History of Acupuncture? The earliest written record of acupuncture in the
West is from an article in a French medical journal from 1671 because
of the colonial involvement of France, England and other European
powers in China and Southeast Asia there has been a long interest
in acupuncture throughout Europe and by the 19th century, that interest
had migrated to the East Coast of this country with scattered practitioners
reported in most major cities along the East Coast of the United
States by the late 19th century. The renowned physician Sir William
Osler, M.D. alludes to acupuncture for the treatment of back pain
in his classic text The Principles and Practice of Medicine
from 1916. With the large numbers of immigrants that came from China,
Korea, Japan, Vietnam and elsewhere in Asia during the 19th and
20th centuries, came numbers of acupuncturists from these countries.
When you mention acupuncture in the United States people think of
China, but there are strong traditions of acupuncture from Japan,
Vietnam, Korea, England, Europe and elsewhere. These different traditions
all have similarities and differences, and all can be found in the
United States at this time. Interest in acupuncture exploded in the United
States after 1972, following the trips to China by President Nixon
and his Secretary of State Kissinger to reestablish relationships
with Mao Tse Tung and his government on mainland China. James Reston
was one of the journalists who accompanied them and he wrote extensively
in the popular press about the remarkable experiences he had when
he developed appendicitis only to have his appendix removed using
acupuncture for anesthesia. There were four physicians in the entourage
that accompanies President Nixon and Secretary of State Kissinger
and they too were fascinated by acupuncture and what they saw in
the Chinese medical system. Whatever skepticism Western physicians
had about acupuncture, the image of a patient undergoing something
as complex as an open heart surgery, wide awake and in no distress
with anesthesia coming from the manipulation of needles in their
hands and feet forced them to acknowledge that there might be something
about acupuncture that needed to be acknowledged. Acupuncture is
part of a comprehensive medical system that treats a wide range
of human maladies but until recently Western physicians have shown
an interest only in those aspects of acupuncture that involve anesthesia
and pain control, and there have been many articles in the Western
medical literature about these subjects since the 1970's. The modern day practice of acupuncture in China
that has been imported to the United States is known as Traditional
Chinese Medicine (TCM). When Mao Tse Tung unified China under his
rule, the practice of acupuncture in China was very fragmented.
Mao established 5 universities and a concerted attempt was made
to restore a sense of scholarship to the practice of acupuncture.
The traditions of acupuncture in China had been maintained through
centuries of political turmoil in scattered families of practitioners
and their knowledge was compiled, textbooks were written and courses
of study developed. In 1957 the "Law of 57" was passed that declared
that all physicians in China must learn the traditional practices
of acupuncture and herbal medicine. There were thousands if not
tens of thousands of Western trained physicians in China, but the
practice of Western Medicine relied upon Western pharmaceuticals
and Mao realized that in his need for a health care system for China
he could not afford Western medicines for a billion people. The
emphasis was returned to the system of medicine that had served
China for the previous 2 millennia, though the system of Traditional
Chinese Medicine (TCM) shows the influence of Western Medicine as
well as the Communist society from which it springs. Eight Principle Acupuncture is another name used
to describe the modern practice of acupuncture in China. It is a
system that is heavily driven by symptoms, with specific prescriptions
of points used to treat specific symptoms. It is a very rational
model and has found a wide appeal in the United States. The national
certification exams for acupuncturists and the state exams in states
like California that have their own certification system all rely
upon the English versions of the modern Chinese texts. There are aspects to the tradition of acupuncture that pre-date the China of Mao Tse Tung that still survive, especially in the traditions of acupuncture in Japan, Vietnam and the styles of acupuncture taught and practiced in England and Europe. In these oldest traditions of acupuncture, the most skilled practitioner was the physician who could, through a careful evaluation of subtle physical signs and a careful evaluation of the condition of the mind and spirit of the person
detect disease in its earliest stages, before the person had become
gravely ill. In ancient China, the physician was only paid as long
as everyone in the family was healthy and if the head of the family
became ill, it was the physician's duty not only to treat the ill
person but to support the family until the illness had passed. This
aspect of identifying and treating imbalances in a person before
they have degenerated into serious physical problems has proven
very useful for the people seen in this office. What Is a Treatment Like? Generally one can expect to begin with a minimum
of 3 to 5 visits. The first visit takes 1 to 1 1/2 hours and subsequent
visits are for 30 to 60 minutes. For children, one can expect a
45 minute initial visit and 15-30 minutes for follow-up visits. Your initial visit includes the following: 1.Thorough understanding of your history and the problems that bring you to treatment. 2.Assessment of patient's Qi (pronounced "chee" and also called vital energy). 3.Physical Examination. 4.Treatment with acupuncture and/or other techniques. 5.Development of an individual treatment plan. What Are the Techniques Used? Acupuncture is applied by stimulating particular anatomical locations on the surface of the body using a variety of techniques. The most studied form of stimulation of these points is by very thin, solid, metallic needles which are manually or electrically manipulated. Please note that these needles are far different from the traditional hypodermic needles we are accustomed to. Acupuncture needles, due to their very small diameter and their contoured shape, are inserted with minimal pain sensation. Stimulation of the acupuncture points is often done with heat produced by burning an herb called moxa, and this procedure is called moxabustion. In the tradition of Oriental Medicine, moxabustion is commonly combined with needle techniques, though moxabustion is often not discussed in many of the
popular articles that have appeared about acupuncture. Microcurrent
stimulation is a more modern therapy that uses very low current
electrical stimulation on the surface of the skin to stimulate the
acupuncture points or to provide stimulation over ailing joints
and muscles. The stimulation is almost imperceptible, involves absolutely
no pain and can be remarkably effective for certain conditions. What are Meridian Therapies? The various forms of Meridian Therapy are techniques used by Dr. Miller that allow stimulus and intervention to affect the body through the same meridians used in acupuncture, but often without needles. Many of these techniques of Meridian Therapy were perfected by Japanese practitioners. These
are useful therapies for people who are afraid of the needles, and
are especially useful in treating children. In general, acupuncture
and herbal therapies are considered remarkably safe forms of treatment.
Even those people who are initially afraid of needles find the modern
sterile single-use needles almost painless. Is Acupuncture
Safe? Acupuncture is safe and without any serious side
effects, one of the reasons for its acceptance. The stainless steel
needles themselves are pre-sterilized, and they are disposed of
after each treatment. Acupuncture has been used by millions of Americans and is recognized by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The FDA regulates acupuncture needles as medical devices, and rates them in the category of "safe and effective." The National Institutes of Health finished a two and one-half year study of acupuncture, electrical acupuncture and microcurrent therapies last year, and published their Consensus Statement in November, 1977. The Consensus Statement from the NIH states that, "While it is often thought that there is substantial research evidence to support conventional medical practices; this is frequently not the case. This does not mean that these treatments are ineffective. The data in support of acupuncture are as strong as those for many accepted Western medical therapies. One of the advantages of acupuncture is that the incidence of adverse effects
is substantially lower than that of many drugs or other accepted
medical procedures used for the same conditions." The complete document from the NIH may be found
at: National
Institutes of Health Consensus Statement on Acupuncture, 1997 Can Acupuncture
Treat Cancer? The interest in acupuncture as a potentially useful
adjunctive and complementary treatment for people with malignancy
is growing. We are admonished to be educated consumers, yet most
people in this country understand very little about the indications
for acupuncture and how it is practiced, and fewer still understand
the differences between the different styles of acupuncture that
are practiced in the United States It is important to understand that even in countries
where there are strong traditions of acupuncture and herbal medicine,
the core of the treatment for cancer centers around the use of Western
chemotherapy drugs and radiation therapy. No one has found an acupuncture
protocol that will shrink tumors and metastatic but acupuncture
and the use of herbs provide very useful adjunctive treatments that
can minimize the very debilitating side effects that accompany these
treatments. Dr. Miller is trained and experienced in both Western
allopathic medicine and in the practice of acupuncture and herbal
medicine and he firmly believes that there are no drugs or procedures
in the practice of Western medicine that can match the effectiveness
provided by acupuncture and herbal medicine in ameliorating the
side effects and supporting the person undergoing chemotherapy and
radiation therapy. Ask anyone who has had a course of chemotherapy
without supportive acupuncture followed by a course of chemotherapy
with the support of adequate and competent acupuncture can provide
and they will testify to this. Even the National Institutes of Health,
in their 1997 "Consensus Paper on Acupuncture" National
Institutes of Health Consensus Statement on Acupuncture, 1997 acknowledged that one of the most successful uses
for acupuncture that they could identify was in the treatment of
nausea associated with chemotherapy. In his training, Dr. Miller has studied the traditions
of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Japanese acupuncture and Vietnamese
acupuncture, but it is a tradition that comes to the United States
from England that he has found to be most useful. When a person with cancer calls our office seeking
acupuncture, we begin the treatments prior to their receiving any
chemotherapy or radiation therapy. Cancer is a profound and life
threatening disease that affects all aspects of a person's being
and this together with the stresses to the mind and spirit that
occur and follow the diagnosis and diagnostic work-up leave a person
somewhat vulnerable and out of balance. Beginning treatment with
a person prior to the introduction of toxic drugs and therapies
goes a long way in helping to minimize the unwanted effects to the
health that these therapies can have. Our greatest successes have
occurred when we begin acupuncture treatment early, though there
is still much that can be done when the person is already in the
midst of the nausea and malaise that accompany the treatment for
cancer. The system of acupuncture developed at the School of Traditional
Acupuncture in England by Professor J.R. Worsley is one that has
attempted to preserve the oldest traditions of acupuncture. It is
referred to variously as Traditional Acupuncture and Traditional
5-Element Acupuncture. There are similar systems in schools in France
and Vietnam and Japan that understand the importance of early treatment
and intervention as a means of preventing serious disease. This
can be a hard idea for the Western mind to grasp, for there is very
little emphasis on preventative medicine in Western medicine, though
there is increasing awareness that the energy spent in keeping a
person well is as important as the treatment of a disease once it
occurs. Finding the correct practitioner for you is important.
You need to be an educated consumer. Inquire as to the types of
work they will be doing with you and how they intend to keep you
well through the chemotherapy and radiation therapy. Finding a practitioner
by word of mouth is often the best approach. Through your friends
and contacts or through referrals from physicians and support groups,
try and find someone who is experienced and who has had success
in treating others. Find someone whom you trust and with whom you
can maintain rapport during the treatment. It is not only for your
comfort that acupuncture is useful, but also to keep the side effects
sufficiently controlled to allow you to finish the course of treatment. What else do I need to know about acupuncture?
Acupuncture is not a miracle cure, nor a "quick
fix." Remember that acupuncture is addressing the underlying cause
of a problem rather than fixing a symptom, therefore it takes time
to have an effect. You may experience immediate results, especially
if the problem is not too chronic, but you may not notice any progress
until later in the course of treatment. It requires a trust and
an acceptance of the process. (Damon P. Miller II, M.D. practices 5-Element Traditional Acupuncture
in the Worsley tradition in Los Altos, CA. All rights reserved.) Further Information For a great source of acupuncture information, including books, notes, essays, journal articles, and new developments, visit:
Acupuncture
Information For further information on acupuncture and the
conditions it treats visit Acupuncture.com For further information on Pediatric Acupuncture,
look for books by Julian Scott, M.A, Ph.D. and Teresa Barlow: To learn more about Macular Degeneration, visit
the Macular Degeneration Foundation,
Inc. For information on books and other sources of information about acupuncture, visit China-Guide.com Return to Acupuncture Home Page
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