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Needles being inserted into a patient's skin.

Acupuncture is a form of traditional Chinese medicine that involves inserting and manipulating filiform needles into various acupuncture points on the body to relieve pain or for therapeutic purposes.[1] The earliest written record of acupuncture is the Chinese text Shiji (史記, English: Records of the Grand Historian) with elaboration of its history in the 2nd century BCE medical text Huangdi Neijing (黃帝內經, English: Yellow Emperor's Inner Canon).[2] Though thought to originate in China, variations in theory and practice are taught throughout the world[3][4] mainly differing in their use of Chinese herbology,[citation needed] the choice of acupuncture points and in modern applications the stimulation of points with new technologies such as electric currents.[5] A related traditional practice is moxibustion (灸), the burning of cone-shaped preparations of Artemisia vulgaris (mugwort) on or near the skin often in proximity to acupuncture points.[6]

The traditional theory of acupuncture ascribes its effectiveness to the manipulation of qi (氣, English: air, breath, a form of vital energy) and hsüeh ("vital juices", roughly equivalent to blood) as they circulate through the body.[7] Acupuncture has been the subject of active scientific research both in regard to its theoretical basis and therapeutic effectiveness since the late 20th century, but it remains controversial among medical researchers and clinicians.[8] Research has failed to find any anatomical basis to support the existence of meridians, or the effectiveness of different points in treating specific conditions.[9] Clinical assessment of acupuncture treatments, due to its invasive and easily detected nature, makes it difficult properly control for placebo effects[8][10][11][12][13] and concerns over publication bias makes it difficult to evaluate the scientific literature.[14] Evidence supports the use of acupuncture to control some types of nausea[15] and pain[16] but evidence for the treatment of other conditions is lacking[8] and several review articles discussing the effectiveness of acupuncture have concluded it is possible to explain through the placebo effect.[17][18][19]

The World Health Organization[20] and the United States' National Institutes of Health (NIH)[10] have stated that acupuncture can be effective in the treatment of neurological conditions and pain, though these statements have been criticized for bias and a reliance on studies that used poor methodology.[14][21] Reports from the USA's National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM), the American Medical Association (AMA) and various USA government reports have studied and commented on the efficacy (or lack thereof) of acupuncture. There is general agreement that acupuncture has few risks when administered by well-trained practitioners using sterile needles[10][22][23][24] though acupuncture treatments have still caused serious adverse effects including infection, trauma and a small number of deaths.[19]

Bibliography

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  • Barnes, LL (2005). Needles, herbs, gods, and ghosts: China, healing, and the West to 1848. Harvard University Press. ISBN 978-0-674-01872-3.
  • Cheng, X (1987). Chinese Acupuncture and Moxibustion (1st ed.). Foreign Languages Press. ISBN 978-7-119-00378-8.
  • Singh, S (2008). Trick or treatment: The undeniable facts about alternative medicine. W. W. Norton & Company. ISBN 978-0-393-06661-6. {{cite book}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help); Free preview at Google Books
  • Stux, Gabriel (1988). Basics of Acupuncture. Berlin: Springer-Verlag. ISBN 978-3-540-53072-5. {{cite book}}: Unknown parameter |coauthor= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)

References

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  1. ^ Novak, Patricia D.; Norman W. Dorland; Dorland, William A. N. (1995). Dorland's Pocket Medical Dictionary. Philadelphia: W.B. Saunders. ISBN 0-7216-5738-9.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  2. ^ Cite error: The named reference Prioreschi2004 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ Cite error: The named reference AAMA list was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  4. ^ Hicks, Angela; Hicks, John; Mole, Peter (2004). Five Element Constitutional Acupuncture (1st ed.). London: Churchill Livingstone. pp. ix. ISBN 978-0-443-07170-6.
  5. ^ Robertson, Valma J; Robertson, Val; Low, John; Ward, Alex; Reed, Ann (2006). Electrotherapy explained: principles and practice. Elsevier Health Sciences. ISBN 978-0-7506-8843-7.
  6. ^ Needham, J (2002). Celestial lancets: a history and rationale of acupuncture and moxa. Routledge. pp. 170–173. ISBN 978-0-7007-1458-2. {{cite book}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  7. ^ Needham, J (2002). Celestial lancets: a history and rationale of acupuncture and moxa. Routledge. pp. 15–6. ISBN 978-0-7007-1458-2. {{cite book}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  8. ^ a b c Cite error: The named reference pmid17265547 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  9. ^ Cite error: The named reference Napadow was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  10. ^ a b c NIH Consensus Development Program (November 3–5, 1997). "Acupuncture --Consensus Development Conference Statement". National Institutes of Health. Retrieved 2007-07-17.
  11. ^ Cite error: The named reference pmid12184353 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  12. ^ Cite error: The named reference pmid16783282 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  13. ^ Committee on the Use of Complementary and Alternative Medicine by the American Public (2005). "Complementary and Alternative Medicine in the United States" (Document). National Academies Press. {{cite document}}: Unknown parameter |url= ignored (help)
  14. ^ a b Singh & Ernst, 2008, p. 70-73.
  15. ^ Cite error: The named reference pmid15266478 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  16. ^ Cite error: The named reference Cochrane back 2005 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  17. ^ Madsen, M. V.; Gøtzsche, P. C.; Hróbjartsson, A. (2009). "Acupuncture treatment for pain: systematic review of randomised clinical trials with acupuncture, placebo acupuncture, and no acupuncture groups". BMJ. 338: a3115. doi:10.1136/bmj.a3115. PMC 2769056. PMID 19174438.
  18. ^ Ernst, E. (2006). "Acupuncture - a critical analysis". Journal of Internal Medicine. 259 (2): 125–137. doi:10.1111/j.1365-2796.2005.01584.x. PMID 16420542.
  19. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference pmid21440191 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  20. ^ Cite error: The named reference WHO 2003.3 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  21. ^ Cite error: The named reference Lancet_WHO_2005 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  22. ^ "Get the Facts, Acupuncture". National Institute of Health. 2006. Retrieved 2006-03-02.
  23. ^ Ernst, G.; Strzyz, H.; Hagmeister, H. (2003). "Incidence of adverse effects during acupuncture therapy-a multicentre survey". Complementary therapies in medicine. 11 (2): 93–97. doi:10.1016/S0965-2299(03)00004-9. PMID 12801494.
  24. ^ Lao, L.; Hamilton, G.; Fu, J.; Berman, B. (2003). "Is acupuncture safe? A systematic review of case reports". Alternative therapies in health and medicine. 9 (1): 72–83. PMID 12564354.