Chen-Acupuncture

Question 1

How old is acupuncture?

Answer 1

5000 years ago. 3000 BC

NOTE: only things with a ** before the question were in red on the ppt.

Question 2

Who is credited with discovering acupuncture?

Answer 2

China’s Yellow Emperor

Yellow Emperor’s Inner Canon of Internal Medicine written thousands of years later. Still studied today.

Question 3

Who brought acupuncture back to the West?

Answer 3

Henry Kissinger was treated for pain relief w/ acupuncture.

Question 4

*In 1996 what important thing happened?

Answer 4

USFDA changes the status of acupuncture needles from Class III to Class II medical devices (safe and effective in the hands of licensed practitioners).

Question 5

*In 1997 what important thing happened?

Answer 5

NIH Consensus Conference finds clear evidence for benefits of acupuncture, particularly for pain conditions.
Who does too.

Question 6

*In 2004, what important thing happened?

Answer 6

nearly 50% of Americans who were enrolled in employer health insurance plans were covered for acupuncture treatments.

Question 7

*T/F Partly due to the success of acupuncture, at least 35% of the US population has used Complementary Medicine in the past year.

Answer 7

True.

Question 8

What is Qi?

Answer 8

the energy of the universe, symbol shows steam rising above rice.
it flows thru all living beings
really just air. but also some energy concepts.

Question 9

Qi flows thru what?

Answer 9

energetic pathways known as meridians

can be accessed via acupuncture points

Question 10

Yin & Yang. Which represents the light & which the dark?

Answer 10

Yin: dark portion
Yang: light portion
Equal but opposite

Question 11

What are the 5 types of Qi?

Answer 11

Fire
Earth
Wood
Water
Metal

Question 12

T/F Acupuncture points are somewhat variable.

Answer 12

True.

Question 13

What is an acupuncture point?

Answer 13

locations on surface of the body which allow contact with the Qi of an acupuncture meridian.
almost every point of your body

Question 14

What is point specificity theory?

Answer 14

stimulation of specific acupoints are important for addressing certain clinical conditions, whereas other acupoints are less effective for those conditions.
**need to find out which points are useful for which diseases.

Question 15

**How does acupuncture really work?

Answer 15

stimulating unmyelinated fibers of nerves
*high electrical conductance, mixed results.
high density of gap jcns at the epithelial of these points
high conc’n of NO & NO synthase @ these identified points.
THERE IS NOT a specific acupuncture receptor.

Question 16

T/F If you stick a needle in a trigger point it helps.

Answer 16

True 92% of the time. These are usu acupuncture points.

Question 17

T/F Acupuncture points correlate well with head zones.

Answer 17

True.

Question 18

How many meridian pathways are there? What are they each associated with?

Answer 18

14 pathways
each associated with an organ
meridians may be a map of a part of the nervous system.

Question 19

T/F Myofascial meridians coordinate with the acupuncture meridians.

Answer 19

True.

Question 20

T/F Referred pain patterns do NOT coordinate with meridians.

Answer 20

False. they do.

Question 21

Is there medication on the back of the needle?

Answer 21

No. That is why they are so skinny b/c they don’t need to be hollow.

Question 22

What are some other things used in acupuncture?

Answer 22

moxa
cupping
gua sha scraping
tui na massage (push & pull)
chinese herbal medicine

Question 23

**Describe the form of herbs used in Chinese medicine.

Answer 23

A concoction of multiple herbs used to treat internal and external conditions
Each herb has a specific purpose – ie. treatment, transport, reduction of side effects, harmonizing, etc.
Prescribed in standard concoctions or personalized formulas.
**idea is that the extra stuff in addition to the main agent will reduce side effects.

Question 24

In a meta analysis, does acupuncture help?

Answer 24

yes, superior to control. 20,000 its studied.

Question 25

Needles work how?

Answer 25

CNS opioid system
doesn’t work if you anesthetize the point–proves has to do with nerves.
acupuncture stimulates the gate of pain
stimulates NT

Question 26

**Which minor adverse events occur w/ acupuncture? What percentage of time?

Answer 26

7-12% of the time
minor bleeding
needling pain
hematoma
dizziness

Question 27

**What do we do to assure safety of acupunctures?

Answer 27

acupuncture needles are sterile & single use

Question 28

**What is the rate of serious adverse events?

Answer 28

5 events per 1 million

Question 29

**How many cases of infection were there w/ acupuncture?

Answer 29

since 1970 there were 50 cases of bacterial infection. & 80 cases of Hep B transmission. But now we don’t reuse needles!

Question 30

**How many deaths were caused by acupuncture?

Answer 30

86 ever b/c of pneumothorax. Don’t puncture the lung!

Question 31

T/F Acupuncture requires long term treatment. Short term relief.

Answer 31

True.

Question 32

What is the Chinese concept of organs?

Answer 32

“Organs in Chinese medicine have different functions than in Western medicine. For example, the Chinese considered the spleen as being responsible for digestion, when in fact Western medicine probably has it right.”