Acupuncture in Physiotherapy

Acupuncture involves the insertion of very fine needles through the skin and tissues at specific points on the body.  There is no injection of any substance and the treatment itself causes minimal discomfort.  Acupuncture stimulates the body to produce  endorphins which attach to opiate receptor sites found throughout the nervous system.  Endorphins help block pain pathways  resulting in relief of pain. The World Health Organization has identified the benefits of acupuncture in the treatment of a wide range of medical problems.

Since 1976 a voluminous body of knowledge  has been published in scientific journals in both China and the west elucidating some of the mechanisms of action of acupuncture.  This evidence of the physiological effects of acupuncture has led to a deeper understanding of the complex neurophysiological events which take place when the body has to deal with pain.

Our physiotherapists are educated by the Acupuncture Foundation of Canada Institute. The AFCI has been training medical professionals in acupuncture since 1974.  Membership includes medical doctors, physiotherapists, dentists, chiropractors, nurses, and naturopaths.  The program is accredited by the Dept. of Family and Community Medicine, University of Toronto and incorporates both an anatomical approach to pain management and dysfunction and classical acupuncture.  

In the hands of western practitioners acupuncture has served as a therapeutic modality for the following types of conditions:
                    Control of pain
                    Autonomic nervous system disorders
                    Promotion of tissue regeneration and healing
                    Surgical analgesia
                                                                           

References

Pomerantz, BH (1979)  Suppression of noxious responses in single neurons of cat spinal cord by electroacupuncture and its reversal by the opiate antagonist Naloxone. Exp. Neurol. 64:327-341.

Chen GB, (1981) Role of the nervous system of the human body with regard to acupuncture analgesia, acupuncture and electrotherapeutics.  Res. Int. 6:7-17.

Bradnam L, Larmer P (2001) Systematic reviews and acupuncture efficacy - What's the point? New Zealand Journal of Physiotherapy, 29(3):7-15.

David J, et al (1999) The effect of acupuncture on patients with rheumatoid arthritis: a randomized, placebo-controlled crossover study. Rheumatology (Oxford), 38(9):864-9.