An informative and provocative text, this book describes the current status of knowledge and challenges scientists to better define acupuncture therapy. The first section covers the scientific basis and mechanism of acupuncture, particularly in relation to the cardiovascular system. The second section is devoted to clinical case studies, illustrating that scientific knowledge can be integrated with traditional concepts in Chinese medicine to provide effective treatments. It is a useful reference guide for advanced students and practitioners of traditional Chinese medicine and acupuncture, as well as scientists conducting physiological and pharmacological research.

Neuropuncture is the clinical manual of a groundbreaking acupuncture system that incorporates neuroscience into its clinical applications for pain management, orthopaedic conditions and internal medicine. It shows acupuncturists how to apply research into the neurophysiological mechanisms of acupuncture and electrical acupuncture to the traditional TCM model of healthcare. The book explains how acupuncture works using Western medical science and illustrates how to apply this knowledge to clinical cases with electrical acupuncture, creating evidence-based acupuncture protocols. These protocols are clinically proven and result in reproducible clinical outcomes.

This is the first book to set out a full range of research strategies for evaluating the clinical practice of acupuncture. Leading acupuncturists and researchers with international reputations share their expertise. They illustrate their descriptions with practical examples of what has worked and what has not. It outlines many of the key challenges in the field. These challenges relate to the nature of acupuncture and the gap between current research evidence and the actual experiences of acupuncturists in the field. By focusing the chapters on key research questions, rather than methods, the book has a user-friendly feel. Each chapter is easily accessible with brief explanations of research designs as well as vignettes of relevant past research. The book is based on a deep understanding of acupuncture, with its inherent complexity in practice, whether based on traditional principles or more modern concepts. By incorporating a more sophisticated understanding of the field, this book details a range of strategies aiming to develop the evidence base with the utmost rigour. It is the first book on acupuncture research to take this unique view, integrating the very best of evidence-based medicine with a genuine sensitivity to the discipline of acupuncture, from its traditional and holistic roots to its more modern interpretations.

Acupuncture therapy has been practiced in China and other Asian countries for more than two thousand years. Modern clinical research has confirmed the impressive therapeutic effect of acupuncture on numerous human ailments, such as controlling pain, nausea, and vomiting. However, the biological mechanisms of acupuncture are still under debate. In Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), the mechanism of acupuncture therapy is explained by a meridian model. According to this model, acupuncture is believed to treat the diseased organs by modulating two conditions known as Yin and Yang, which represent all the opposite principles that people find in the universe, both inside and outside the human body. Yin and Yang complement each other, and are subjected to changes between each other. The balance of Yin and Yang is thought to be maintained by Qi, an energy substance flowing constantly through the meridian, a network connecting all the organs of the body. The illness, according to this theory, is the temporary dominance of one principle over the other, owing to the blockade of the Qi from flowing through the meridian under certain circumstance. The axiom of “No stagnation, No pain” in TCM summarizes this concept. Thus, the goal of acupuncture treatment is to restore the balance of Yin and Yang conditions in the diseased organ(s). This theory has been considered to be useful to guide this ancient therapy, such as carrying out diagnosis, deciding on the principle, and selecting the acupoints.

Acupuncture Treatment for Musculoskeletal Pain covers the basics of acupuncture theory and explains the precepts of Eastern medicine. The text is written for orthopaedic surgeons, anesthesiologists and rehabilitation medicine specialists, and will aid them in their diagnosis and treatment of musculoskeletal pain -- both acute and chronic -- as well as arthritis. Readers of the text will progress on a journey through healing that will serve as a useful adjunct to the procedures and medications currently in use. The author breaks the subject down into three sections: Basics of Acupuncture, Acupuncture Treatment of the Muscoloskeletal Acupuncture Points and Indications, and Special Techniques.

Acupuncture in Manual Therapy is a comprehensive overview of manual therapy interventions combined with acupuncture management of musculoskeletal disorders covering all major joints of the body. The book is intended to offer physiotherapists and students of acupuncture a clinical reasoning model, whilst supporting suggested interventions with the relevant evidence base in order to alleviate pain, restore function and facilitate rehabilitation within musculoskeletal management. It places an emphasis on the neurophysiological processes of pain management stressing the importance of using the correct intervention for the relevant presenting pain mechanism. Each chapter discusses suggested manual intervention, acupuncture evidence and physiological processes underpinning this combined approach to musculoskeletal pain and dysfunction including meridian acupuncture, auricular acupuncture, electroacupuncture, tens and trigger point acupuncture as a means of addressing the varying pain patterns presented within musculoskeletal rehabilitation. This book provides knowledge from distinctive and prominent contributors from the world of manual therapy and acupuncture whilst this expertise is further supported by the provision of student case studies to offer support and enhance learning. - Twelve chapters addressing each major joint of the musculoskeletal system - Over 100 images - A clinical reasoning model for manual therapy and acupuncture intervention - Relevant case studies that support the student undertaking acupuncture training

This book is a printed edition of the Special Issue "Acupuncture – Basic Research and Clinical Application" that was published in Medicines

Comprehensively revised and expanded with vital new content, the second edition of Medical Acupuncture continues to explore the realistic integration of acupuncture into conventional medicine. Advocating the Western medical acupuncture approach (WMA), this science-based compendium provides the trained practitioner with all the latest research on the effectiveness of WMA and its associated mechanisms, techniques, clinical practice and evidence. Medical Acupuncture demonstrates a variety of needling techniques and clinical applications within the context of WMA and its evolution from traditional Chinese acupuncture using current knowledge of anatomy, physiology and pathology alongside the principles of evidence-based medicine. Split into seven sections the book begins by establishing the roots of WMA in the Introduction and then progresses on to describe the mechanisms of action in Section 2, including peripheral components of stimulation and evidence from neuroimaging. Sections 3 and 4 cover clinical approaches (eg, superficial needling, electroacupuncture, safety of acupuncture) and techniques related to acupuncture (TENS, laser therapy). Section 5 takes a closer look at the difficulties faced by trials and reviews while Section 6 goes on to showcase 21 clinical uses of WMA, ranging from chronic pain, mental health, obstetrics and primary care to sports medicine, respiratory conditions and neurology. The final reference section contains dermatome/myotome maps, meridian/channel charts and standard international nomenclature. - Comprehensive coverage of the scientific evidence and clinical application of acupuncture in medicine - Balances the genuine benefits of acupuncture against unfounded claims - Presents a wide range of treatable conditions from psychiatry and palliative care through to the pain clinic and veterinary medicine - Clinical points boxes highlight key knowledge and learning - Illustrated with over 130 drawings and photographs - Content restructure and overhaul with contributions from over 40 world leading experts - Individual chapters on the use of acupuncture for a wide range of medical conditions including gynaecology and infertility, cancer and palliative care, drug dependence, obesity, sports medicine, dentistry and veterinary practice - Updated with the latest scientific evidence - Expanded information on neuroanatomical and neurophysiological considerations in relation to the mechanisms of acupuncture

Written by many scientists and clinicians from China, USA, Canada and other countries, this monograph discusses translational research on acupuncture. Besides general topics on acupuncture practice (e.g., different styles and techniques of acupuncture), topics include some refractory diseases such as chronic fatigue syndrome, Parkinson’s disease, cardiovascular dysfunction, chronic pain, post-concussion syndrome and post-traumatic stress disorder and cancer-related symptoms. The factors influencing acupuncture research are comprehensively addressed in the final chapter. This unique book provides a translational perspective on modern acupuncture for not only acupuncturists, but also neuroscientists, neurologists, and other clinicians. For medical students and undergraduate and graduate students majoring in biology, this book is an advanced course for learning the progress in alternative and complementary Medicine.

At the 1998 Annual Representative Meeting of the BMA a resolution was passed that the Board of Science and Education should "investigate the scientific basis and efficacy of acupuncture and the quality of training and standards of competence in its practitioners''. This report summarizes literature sources and research on acupuncture, looks at safety aspects including the treatment's adverse effects, discusses education and training guidelines, presents results from a survey of UK GPs and suggests future developments for acupuncture, particularly its increased incorporation into the NHS. It will provide doctors, patients, researchers and purchasers of healthcare with information on this most widely used therapy of complementary and alternative medicine, enabling them to become more informed on the value of acupuncture and its likely place within the NHS.