Acupuncture & Massage BLOG

CHRONIC FIBROMYALGIA PAIN MAY BE REDUCED WITH ACUPUNCTURE

Acupuncture can effectively minimize symptoms of fibromyalgia, a musculoskeletal disease that causes joint stiffness, fatigue, chronic pain, sleep disturbance, and other symptoms, a recent Mayo Clinic study finds. Acupuncture not only offered pain relief for fibromyalgia patients, but it significantly improved fatigue and anxiety symptoms, the scientists reported in a recent issue of the Mayo Clinic Proceedings.

David Martin, M.D., and Mayo Clinic colleagues tested 50 fibromyalgia patients for whom other symptom-relief treatments (analgesic medication, antidepressants, muscle relaxants) were ineffective to determine if acupuncture improved their symptoms. Half were treated with acupuncture, half with simulated acupuncture (acupoint bandages affixed with needles that stuck out of the bandage but did not pierce the skin). The patients got six treatments over a two- to three-week period.

Based on answers to the Fibromyalgia Impact Questionnaire, symptoms were greatly improved in the acupuncture group compared with the control group during the study period. Maximum benefit occurred at one month. “We found that acupuncture significantly improved symptoms of fibromyalgia. Symptomatic improvement was not restricted to pain relief and was most significant for fatigue and anxiety,” the researchers wrote. Martin suggests that patients interested in acupuncture should ask their doctors about it and request referrals to qualified acupuncture physicians.

“This study shows there is something real about acupuncture and its effects on fibromyalgia,” said Martin. “It’s my speculation that if acupuncture works for these patients with recalcitrant fibromyalgia—where previous treatments had not provided satisfactory relief—it would likely work for many of the millions of fibromyalgia patients.” The researchers concluded that acupuncture could fill a gap in available therapies for the disease as something additive to medication and may have a more primary role in the symptomatic treatment of patients who are unable to tolerate medication side effects. For more information about acupuncture for the treatment of fibromyalgia symptoms contact Dr. Richard Browne at (305) 595-9500.

ACUPUNCTURE AND MASSAGE BENEFICIAL IN TREATMENT OF OSTEOARTHRITIS

According to the Arthritis Foundation, osteoarthritis is the most prevalent form of arthritis, causing more than seven million physician visits per year, second only to cardiovascular disease as the cause of adult chronic disability.

Acupuncture integrated into allopathic health care can relieve knee and hip osteoarthritis pain and improve joint function within three months, a recent study appearing in Arthritis & Rheumatism indicates. The researchers, led by Claudia Witt, M.D., designed the study to reflect general medical practice and was one of the largest acupuncture studies to date. Assessing 3,553 osteoarthritis patients, the researchers compared 322 patients given 15 acupuncture sessions in the initial three-month period with 310 who received no acupuncture for the first three months. A third group of 2,921 patients who did not consent to randomization received the same treatment as the acupuncture group. All patients received primary care.

After the initial three months, the researchers found that those receiving acupuncture experienced less pain and joint stiffness. “Patients with chronic osteoarthritis of the knee or the hip who were treated with acupuncture in addition to routine care showed significant improvements in symptoms and quality of life compared with patients who received routine care alone,” the authors noted.

Recent research has suggested benefits from both acupuncture and massage therapy as osteoarthritis health care modalities. When integrated into allopathic care, complementary and alternative therapies are most important when conventional treatments are far from ideal. Currently available non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs are often not well tolerated by older adults with osteoarthritis. Swedish massage therapy reduces pain and improves joint flexibility in adults with osteoarthritis of the knee.

Patients receiving acupuncture and massage therapy for osteoarthritis conditions demonstrate significant improvements in pain, stiffness and physical functional disability. For more information about acupuncture for treatment of osteoarthritis conditions contact Dr. Richard Browne, Acupuncture Physician, at (305) 595-9500.

CAM-ORIENTED PRIMARY CARE PROVIDERS RESULT IN HIGH PATIENT SATISFACTION

Patients visiting holistically-oriented physicians who serve as primary care physicians (PCPs) have lower utilization costs and higher patient satisfaction levels than patients treated by conventional medical doctors according to a study published in the May issue of the Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics.

“This study confirms that integration of allopathic and complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) providers can positively impact patient quality of care while limiting overall costs. This approach to patient care has great potential to improve the U.S. healthcare system,” said study coauthor James Winterstein, DC. Researchers found that over the course of the seven-year study, patients visiting CAM-oriented PCPs had 60 percent fewer hospitalizations, 62 percent fewer outpatient surgical cases and 85 percent lower pharmaceutical costs when compared with total network HMO utilization rates and costs.

The CAM doctors treated and managed cases ranging from upper respiratory tract infections and allergies to headaches, orthopedic and other medical conditions. “Our most recent analysis supports earlier findings that patients visiting CAM-oriented primary care physicians experienced fewer hospitalizations, underwent fewer surgeries and used considerably fewer pharmaceuticals than HMO patients who received traditional care,” said Winterstein. “We have demonstrated that it is possible to deliver CAM-oriented primary care in a highly regulated environment without compromising either quality or safety.”

Patients reported on the quality of care received through the use of annual patient satisfaction surveys. The integrative CAM patients consistently rated their experiences more positively than did members enrolled within HMO conventional medical plans. In the United States, 36 percent of adults are using some form of CAM. For chronic conditions, such as recovery from an illness or surgery, CAM can be more effective than allopathic health care.

If you are considering incorporating CAM into your health care contact Dr. Richard Browne, Acupuncture Physician, at (305) 595-9500 for a free initial 30-minute consultation.

TRANSCENDENTAL MEDITATION MAY REDUCE PAIN AND EXTEND LIFESPAN

Stress and depression can increase chronic pain and risk of cardiovascular heart disease. Transcendental Meditation ™ may make tests and treatments easier for patients, improves stress reactivity, decreases the brain’s reaction to pain, and may extend lifespan. TM, a non-drug stress-reduction method, improves heart functioning by reducing sympathetic nervous system activation associated with stress.

Twelve long-term meditators who had been practicing TM showed a 40-50 percent lower brain response to pain compared to 12 controls, reported by a recent NeuroReport journal article. When the 12 controls then learned and practiced TM for five months, their brain responses to pain also decreased by a comparable 40-50 percent. TM may reduce the brain’s response to pain by producing a physiological state capable of modifying various kinds of pain. “TM creates a more balanced outlook on life and a greater equanimity in reacting to stress. This study suggests that this is not just an attitudinal change, but a fundamental change in how the brain functions,” says Orme-Johnson, lead author.

Stress responses to untreated pain adversely impact all body systems, including cardiovascular, respiratory, endocrine, and immune system. TM also reduces risk factors in heart disease and other chronic disorders such as high blood pressure and high levels of harmful cholesterol. These reductions extend lifespan by slowing the aging process. “Research has found that the Transcendental Meditation program reduces risk factors in heart disease and other chronic conditions, such as high blood pressure, smoking, psychological distress, stress hormones, harmful cholesterol, and atherosclerosis,” says Robert Schneider, M.D., director of the Center of Natural Medicine and Prevention.

These present findings are consistent with previous research demonstrating that TM reduces factors that contribute to the cause or progression of heart failure, such as metabolic syndrome, left ventricular hypertrophy (enlargement of the heart) and severity of atherosclerosis. For more information about Transcendental Meditation’s health benefits, contact Dr. Richard Browne at (305) 595-9500.

ACUPRESSURE DECREASES AGITATED BEHAVIOR IN DEMENTIA

Massage could offer a drug-free way to treat agitation and depression among dementia patients, according to a review that appears in a recent issue of the Journal of Clinical Nursing. Researchers at the National Yang-Ming University in Taiwan found that providing 15-minute treatment sessions twice a week for five days a week yielded considerable benefits, including reductions in verbal and physical attacks and wandering.

“Agitated behavior in people with dementia is a major concern for caregivers,” says co-author Professor Li-Chan Lin from the Institute of Clinical Nursing at National Yang-Ming University, Taiwan. “It can endanger patients and others, make it necessary for them to be moved from familiar surroundings and demoralize and psychologically distress caregivers.” Twenty patients were studied over six weeks, including one week before the treatment started and one week after it finished. All lived in dementia units at a long-term care facility.

Of the patients, 70 percent suffered from severe behavioral disturbances, with a further five per cent suffering from extremely severe impairment. The remaining 25 percent were classed as medium. An average pre-treatment score of just over 79 was recorded on a specialist scale developed to measure agitation levels. After four weeks’ treatment this had fallen to just under 60. Pre-treatment agitation was highest in the 59-65 and 80 plus age groups.

In week one, before the acupressure treatment began, physical attacks were given an average score of 5.53. These included pushing, beating, scratching, and pinching. By week two, when the treatment began, the physical attack score had fallen to 1.46. By week five, the last week of treatment, the score had fallen to 0.53. In week six, when the treatment had stopped, the figure rose to 2.17. Similar patterns were recorded for verbal attacks and non-physical and non-verbal agitation, which included wandering, stealing, undressing, and tearing things.

“Our study showed that providing patients with acupressure twice-daily for five days a week significantly reduced agitated behavior and wandering,” says Lin. For more information about AMC’s 7-_ month Massage Therapy diploma program contact Joe Calareso at (305) 595-9500.

GREEN TEA REDUCES PLAQUE FORMATION IN HUNTINGTON’S DISEASE

Green tea, reported to have many health benefits, is rich in powerful antioxidants that make it a possible remedy for many medical conditions. The substance epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG), extracted from green tea, interferes with very early events in the aggregation process of the mutant huntingtin protein, causing plaque formation in Huntington’s disease (HD) to slow. Study findings appear in a recent issue of Human Molecular Genetics.

HD, along with Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s, are neurodegenerative diseases caused by protein misfolding. The nerve cells progressively degenerate in the areas of the brain that control movement and that are involved in memory and emotions. Researchers at the Charit-Universitts-medizin Berlin hope these findings can be a starting point for the development of a medical treatment for HD and related diseases in which misfolded proteins occur.

Green tea may also protect the bladder from becoming inflamed and could be used along with other herbal agents to treat inflammatory bladder diseases, according to a second preliminary study that looked at the ability of green tea to protect bladder cells from inflammation. The University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine study, presented at the annual meeting of the American Urological Association (AUA) in Anaheim, CA, found that normal and cancerous bladder cells exposed to two major catechins components of green tea, EGCG and epicatechin gallate (ECG), protected bladder cells from inflammation.

EGCG has been found effective in reducing risk of HIV infection and slowing the spread of the virus in people who are already infected by protecting the body’s immune system, according to a UK and US joint study. Previous studies have also linked green tea to lower risk of cancer and Alzheimer’s disease. A study from Japan published last September in the Journal of the American Medical Association reported high consumption of green tea was linked to reduced overall risk of death due to all causes and cardiovascular disease. For more information about Chinese food therapy for health and well-being contact Dr. Richard Browne at (305) 595-9500.

EXERCISE, ACUPUNCTURE HELP WOMEN REDUCE PREGNANCY PAIN

Stretching exercises and acupuncture can help relieve back and pelvic pain that often occur during pregnancy. A Cochrane review looked at eight studies that examined the effect of adding pregnancy-specific strengthening exercises, acupuncture and other pain-relief interventions to regular prenatal care. More than two-thirds of pregnant women experience back pain and almost one-fifth report pelvic pain. As pregnancy progresses, pain can interfere with daily activities.

Women who participated in a variety of intervention programs recognized some relief of back and pelvic pain, said Victoria Pennick, M.H.Sc., registered nurse and lead review author. “When you’re pregnant, your center of gravity is off. You have to arch your back to balance this huge tummy, so you end up with extra strain on your back and pelvic muscles,” said Pennick. The review involved 1,305 pregnant women from Sweden, Iran, Brazil, Thailand, and Australia. The review appears in the current issue of The Cochrane Library. Those women who participated in prenatal exercise programs and received acupuncture reported significant decreases in pregnancy-related pain compared to women who received the usual prenatal care.

The exercise intervention programs taught moms-to-be movements to stretch the pelvic muscles, strengthen the abdominal and hamstring muscles and increase spinal flexibility. In one study of women with both back and pelvic pain, 60 percent who received acupuncture reported less intense pain, compared to 14 percent of women who did not. The study found no complications with the use of acupuncture in pregnant women. On average, women who followed through with the pelvic or back pain interventions experienced some pain relief and reported less need for pain medication, physical therapy and posture-support belts.

Acupuncture represents an effective alternative for the treatment of pregnancy-related pain. Pregnant women should be avoiding medications. Acupuncture, which releases the body’s natural painkillers, can treat pain during pregnancy. Acupuncture can also ease women through labor, birth and the immediate postpartum period. For more information about acupuncture for the treatment of pain occurring during pregnancy contact Dr. Richard Browne at (305) 595-9500.