In response to the article, "We're Fighting the Wrong Battle" by Steven Collins published in the March 2019 issue of Acupuncture Today:
The opinions expressed by the author do not reflect the position of the acupuncture profession. Both the Council of Colleges of Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine (CCAOM), who develops academic and clinical guidelines and core curriculum requirements for master's level programs in acupuncture, and the National Certification Commission for Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine (NCCAOM) who maintain evidence-based standards of competence and credentialing for acupuncturists agree that "dry needling is an acupuncture technique."1-2 Medical experts from the American Medical Association (AMA), the American Academy of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation (AAPMR), the American Academy of Medical Acupuncture (AAMA) and the American Society of Acupuncturists (ASA) also agree that "dry needling should only be performed by practitioners with standard training and familiarity with routine use of needles in their practice, such as licensed medical physicians and licensed acupuncturists."3-4
The author falsely claims that dry needling is not acupuncture. Even the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) classifies the filiform needle as a Class II medical device "intended to pierce the skin in the practice of acupuncture."5 The same technique that is now being referred to as dry needling, has been taught in acupuncture curriculums before I started my training in 2005 at Pacific College of Oriental Medicine (PCOM). This orthopedic needling technique is well established in the acupuncture profession; it is taught to students, available in continuing education courses, and practiced in acupuncture clinics throughout the U.S.
The facts are clear. The SAME filiform needle is used on the SAME anatomical points with the SAME mechanical stimulation techniques to elicit the SAME physiological responses. Acupuncturists receive training in bioscience, orthopedic, neurological and physical examination in addition to over 1,300 hours of acupuncture training. Licensed Acupuncturists are the leading experts in the field of orthopedic needling.
The "fight" is not against other professional bodies, but rather for the public. Patients receiving orthopedic needling by non-acupuncture providers are at a greater risk of injury, and it is our professional duty to protect the public and to ensure their safety.
I have worked alongside five physical therapists that have taken weekend dry needling courses with two different vendors. One course teaches non-acupuncture participants acupuncture points, protocols and electro-acupuncture. Another course uses acupuncture research to gain credibility yet misleads the non-acupuncture students to believe that acupuncture is not based on science nor anatomy. Scientific research on acupuncture is abundant, spanning over 50 years in the U.S., with 29,590 scientific articles listed on PubMed.6 In-depth knowledge of human anatomy is not only necessary to locate acupuncture points, but required to achieve the appropriate needle depth and angle to effectively treat the targeted tissue.
I encourage the author and all acupuncturists to join their state's acupuncture association (ASAcu.org). Individual opinions and concerns are important and best discussed with members of one's state association. These dedicated acupuncturists work tirelessly to improve the acupuncture profession, responding to questions, sharing resources, and enlightening colleagues like this author. Our profession continues to gain strength as more acupuncturists become active professional members, staying informed and working together to promote acupuncture (inclusive of all techniques and modalities).
It is in the best interest of our profession that opinion papers are written by informed experts. This article misinforms the public and reflects poorly on the profession as a whole; it should be removed from online access.
Dr. Korina St John, DACM, DiplOM (NCCAOM), LAc (MN, ND), Minnesota Acupuncture Association, Board Member, American Society of Acupuncturists, MN Delegate, @thePoKdoctor
References
Chronic pain afflicts over 20% of the adult population. Sadly, most MDs have essentially no education in treating pain, beyond offering a few toxic medications. Then they tend to steer people with pain away from those health practitioners who are trained. This puts the acupuncture community on the front lines for addressing this epidemic.
When the body is going through a stressful event, the sympathetic system is activated. This activation will help the body with a life-threatening situation. If this state is activated for prolonged periods of time, it starts to consume energy. These traumatic events that generate stressors in the autonomic nervous system (ANS) will eventually become internalized.
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One of the things that makes acupuncture so difficult to measure is that the medicine actually does contain some esoteric aspects. There have been numerous studies that demonstrate the neurochemical reasoning behind why acupuncture points stimulate the autonomic nervous system to enact change However, not all the benefits of TCM can easily be measured by randomized, controlled trials. But does that make them fundamentally and definitively untrue?
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