Research Confirms the Superiority of Acupuncture Over Standard Medical Care in the Treatment of Osteoarthritic Knee Pain

New studies confirm earlier studies revealing acupuncture’s superior ability to treat osteoarthritic knee pain compared to Western biomedicine treatment.

The website of the Healthcare Medicine Institute posted a study involving a meta-analysis of 14 random, separate clinical trials. It concluded that “Acupuncture provided a larger improvement in function and gave relief for osteoarthritis knee pain that was significantly better than waiting for further treatment or conventional care treatment.” This study involved 3835 participants all suffering from osteoarthritic knee pain.

The study also observed that osteoarthritic knee pain treatment led to “the restoration of function and a much better relief of the pain” compared to conventional biomedical treatment and sham acupuncture.

The HMI said that following the publication of research by the NIH (National Institutes of Health), interest in acupuncture treatment in Bellingham for knee pain sprang. This research, which started in 2006, involved also a meta-analysis of 13 separate studies, “that dealt with adults suffering from osteoarthritis of the knee or chronic knee pain who were randomly chosen for treatment with either placebo acupuncture (sham acupuncture), other sham therapies, active intervention, the usual care, or real acupuncture treatment.”

In the end, the analysis showed that “Acupuncture following the criteria for adequate therapy led to significant improvements in function and pain relief in patients with chronic knee pain compared to no additional intervention and sham acupuncture.”

For thousands of years, acupuncture has been the go to treatment for countless numbers of people suffering from knee pain.

Studies done throughout the years, have demonstrated acupuncture’s value in the treatment of osteoarthritic knee pain in terms of efficacy and cost; furthermore, acupuncture is deemed to be a much better alternative to knee surgery.

The Acupuncture in Medicine journal, in 2008 published a study noting that this ancient form of Chinese medicine was administered for two years on 90 individuals whose ages averaged 71 years old.

The Counsel & Heal reported that the patients, at first, were treated with acupuncture once each week for four weeks and later, the number of treatments was scaled down to once every one and a half months. After a year, 41 of these individuals were still getting treatments and after two more years, 31 were.

Physicians observed that even after the first month, the patients manifested marked improvements in their levels of pain.

Instructed to examine two factors were nurses who were specifically trained to provide acupuncture treatment care; these factors were whether acupuncture was a valid alternative to costly knee replacement surgeries or whether the treatment led to improvements whilst minimizing cost of care.

The study observed that while pundits see knee operations as worth the cost since they’re typically successful, they’re not for everyone, which made searching for alternative options imperative. The reason for this: At that time, it was reported that in one in seven patients were still in constant pain and they were unable to walk far.

These limitations seem to be transcended by acupuncture. While relieving pain, acupuncture led to a reduction in medical cost in the tens of millions in the U.S. each year.

How Does Acupuncture Work?

It may seem a bit strange at first, to those who have never tried acupuncture, but this very old healing technique has survived for thousands of years precisely due to its efficacy in treating certain illnesses.

Filiform or filamentous, sterile needles are stuck just below the surface of the skin in specific parts of the body, based on the condition the patient requires treatment from. (gastrointestinal problems, back pain, sore knees, allergies, etc.).

The acupuncture points or acupoints are where the needles are inserted are controlled by what energy channels called meridians. These channels are where the Chinese believe the vital energy of the body flowed. There are several specific spots along these meridians that regulate levels of health and various parts of the body. The human body has a dozen primary meridians and eight secondary meridians.

If you have stomach problems, this does not necessarily mean that’s where the needles go. A few of the acupoints that are commonly used include:

Stomach – The acupoint that’s situated on the leg’s front below the knee.

Lungs – The acupoint found on the inside of the arm above the wrist.

The Large Intestine – The acupoint found between the thumb and index finger on the back of the hand.