ACUPUNCTURE FOUND TO REDUCE INFLAMMATION IN PATIENTS

You may already know that the benefits of acupuncturetreatments are many, but recent research is showing physical evidence ofacupuncture's value beyond anything that has been understood before. Acupuncturetreatments may reduce inflammation that causes sepsis death and has potentialbenefits not just for sepsis, but also for treating other inflammatory diseasessuch as rheumatoid arthritis, osteoarthritis and Crohn's disease.

These new research documents show a direct connectionbetween the use of acupuncture and sepsis, a condition that can develop inhospital intensive care units and kills an estimated 250,000 people in theUnited States every year.

Researchers already know that stimulation of the vagus nervetriggers processes in which the body reduces inflammation, so they wanted tosee whether a form of acupuncture could reduce inflammation in septic mice.When electroacupuncture was applied to the mice with sepsis, molecules calledcytokines that help limit inflammation were stimulated, and half of those micesurvived. There was no survival among mice that did not receive the acupuncture.

The researchers then wanted to figure out exactly why theacupuncture treatments had worked. They made a discovery that, at first, was counterproductive. When they removed adrenal glands (which produce hormones in the body) the electroacpuncture stoppedworking. That discovery questioned use of acupuncture for sepsis in humans,because most human cases of sepsis include sharply reduced adrenal function. Theresearchers went on further to find the specific changes that occurred whenelectroacupuncture was performed with working adrenal glands. The changesincluded increased levels of dopamine. They found that adding dopamine byitself did not curb the inflammation.

Acupuncture is safe and effective for the treatment for painfrom acute injuries as well as long-term chronic conditions.