In present time, there are number of the Acupuncture teaching institutions and Certification / Licensing Boards throughout the country. And, there are estimated about 11,000 licensed acupuncturists in the United States. And the numbers will grow steadily as more people are aware of the effectiveness and the safety of Acupuncture.
In 1996, the Federal Food and Drugs Administration has classified Acupuncture needles as Class II medical device. They are 'Not Experimental' but Medically Valid and Proven Safe Class II Medical Device used by qualified licensed practitioners
In November of 1997, the National Institutes of Health and several other agencies have concluded in a monumental National Symposium on Complementary Medicine, a Consensus Development Conference, that "... there is sufficient evidence... of Acupuncture's value to expand its use into conventional medicine and to encourage further studies of its physiology and clinical value. ..." The panelists have recommended that the federal government and the insurance companies to expand the coverage of Acupuncture in order to have more people receive its healing effect.
In the State of California, the Acupuncturists are considered as a "Primary Care Provider" in the Workman's Comp. system. Even though the State lawmakers have rejected a plan to have an Acupuncturist Qualified Medical Examiner in the Industrial Medical Council, the Acupuncturist can see the patients of the Workmen's Compensation cases as any other medical professions such as Medical Doctors or Doctor of Chiropractic medicine.
Many states have different laws and regulations regarding Acupuncture and each prospective patients should find out for themselves what the laws and regulations are for the State where they reside.
Acupuncture has over 3,000 years of history. Acupuncture utilizes fine needles made of metal, usually steel but silver or gold needles are also available, to treat various disease by inserting them into one or more points in the body. The needles will be manipulated according to the healing principles and sometimes they can be connected with low DC currents to have constant low level stimulation. This is also called Electro Acupuncture Techniques.
These points, which are called Acupuncture points, are typically located on the human body following the "Meridians", a path of the flow of the "Qi" (or Chi). The "Qi" can be considered as a Vital Life Energy / Force. There are 362 traditional points on one side of the body plus numerous extra points and Ashi - non acupuncture Meridian points. (Over 1000 total points including Auricular (Ear) points and non - traditional but 'Empirical' acupuncture points on the human body.)
The Acupuncture needles are "Filiform" needles which are solid needles without cutting edge non tapered and Not - hollow inside. This design minimize the tissue trauma and also minimizes the possible infection if the needles were not sterilized. Most of the practitioners in the United States however, uses sterile single - use Disposable Acupuncture needles
There are more than one style of Acupuncture treatments available. The Traditional Chinese Style acupuncture utilizes mainly body points with typically thicker gauge needles (30 ~ 32 Gauge). The Korean Constitutional and Koryo Hand Acupuncture which utilizes shorter needles for the Hand points and different point combinations using "Wu Xing" or "5 Element" for the body points. And the Japanese style Acupuncture utilizes finer needles (34 - 38 Gauge) with very shallow insertion of 5 to 15 degree and shorter needle retention time. Then there is an "Auricular Acupuncture" which utilizes the Acupuncture points on the Ears to treat various illnesses. Then there are styles of Acupuncture which has "Variations" or "Combinations" of styles which can be described as 'Eclectic'.
After the adaptation and implementation of the Chinese style Acupuncture as far back as the Stone Age, the beginning of the Korean Constitutional and Korean Koryo Hand Acupuncture which have basis on the "Five Element Theory" (Wu Xing in Chinese, Oh Hang in Korean) was developed in Korea. Then about 560 AD the Korean Acupuncture have structured firmly into the Korean Constitutional Acupuncture.
Following the "Five Element Theory" of "Metal, Water, Wood, Fire, and Earth", the practitioner of the Korean Constitutional Acupuncture will select the points typically in the extremities to be used to treat the patients. For Koryo Hand Acupuncture, the treatments of patients were done by inserting small fairly thin (~ 34 Gauge) needles into various corresponding hand Acupuncture points.
In Japan, the art and the practice of Acupuncture was introduced to them from the Korea. More specifically the transference or propagation of the art and culture including the practice of the Acupuncture and other forms of Oriental Medicine occured in the "Three Kingdom Era" in Korea to Japan. Since the introduction and adoptation, the Japanese Acupuncture has evolved to their unique form and style over many years. Currently, there are number of famous practitioners of Japanese acupuncture who have been practicing in United States. Couple of the famous Japanese Acupuncture practitioners in the United States would be Miki Shima and Kiiko Matsumoto.
In obvious difference of style, the Nagano - Matsumoto style of Japanese Acupuncture will base diagnosis on the findings from the "Hara" (Stomach / Navel) in addition to typical questioning, tongue, and pulse assessment. The needles will be much more finer (34 ~ 38 Gauge) and the insertion angle will be very shallow (5 ~ 10 Degrees). Sometimes, the needle retention time will also be very short. And often, the use of multiple extra fine cone of Moxibustion with the Acupuncture is a common treatment modality.
There are number of other treatment modalities used in conjunction with Acupuncture to treat the patients. To name a few there are "Moxibustion", "Cupping" and "Guasha".
Moxibustion is a heat therapy using the 'Wool' of the herb Folium Herba Artemisiae (Mugwort Leaf) on the Acupuncture point or on the Acupuncture needle. The 'Direct' Moxibustion is using the "Moxa" on the skin without any protection. The 'Indirect' Moxibustion is using the "Moxa" on the skin with protective and curative items such as Salt, Ginger, and Aconite. There is a 'Warming Needle' technique which uses "Moxa" on the top of the Acupuncture needle to introduce the heat energy from the burning "Moxa" deep into the tissue.
The heat energy of the "Moxa" will push the "Qi" along with the "Xue", blood, in the body to promote healing. The "Moxibustion" therapy with or without Acupuncture is very effective against certain type of 'Arthritis', type ot 'Tuberculosis', and many other diseases especially ones having cold signs and symptoms. Sometimes, the heat from the "Moxa" will leave a scar if used directly on the skin. Prospective patients should be made aware of all the pertinent information before utilizing this and other type of treatment modalities.
There is a technique or discipline called "Cupping." It utilizes plastic or glass 'Cups' and 'Vacuum' inside the cups while they are on the patient's skin surface. This technique is also very old and have numerous documentation attesting its effectiveness. It is especially effective treatment modality for muscular disease in the back or moderate to large affected areas. It will definitely leave markings but they will go away within couple of the weeks in time.
In addition, there is a technique called "Gua Sha" or scraping. By scraping along the "Meridians" or Acupuncture channels, toxins can be expelled and circulation of the "Qi" and "Xue" will be invigorated. This technique is used usually to get rid of the Cold / Fluor to eliminate the "toxins" from the surface of the body.
As stated in the Oriental Medicine page, even some of the Western Medicine practitioners are utilizing Acupuncture. They uses and incorporates Acupuncture into their practice afther a program that runs typically about 300 hours.
Each prospective patients should contact the licensing board or organizations in the corresponding states (e.g. State of California Acupuncture Board) or contact the nationally recognized Acupuncture associations such as California State Oriental Medical Association or American Association of Oriental Medicine. You can find these web sites and more on the Links page.
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Contents copywrited 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002. David Hongjune Jeon, L.Ac., Dipl. Ac/CH., MSOM. All rights reserved.