|
|
|
Coca leaves are not the same thing that Chloridrate of Cocaine
IS THE COCA LEAVES A DAMN HERBAL OR A BLESSED PLANT Natural Herbs for a long and healthy life. By Paul Ramssauer http://www.peruherbals.com The Incas discover the coca medicinal and magical properties 2,000 a.c., but the large industrialized...
Herbal Remedies
Herbal Remedies is where you can buy herbal remedies, vitamins, natural medicines, nutritional supplements, herbal supplements, diet pills, weight loss pills and many more herbal products. Herbal Remedies have been used for thousands of years. The...
How to loose weight with Homeopathy and the .4 C's?
Homeopathy is a therapeutic modality practiced worldwide.
It was founded by Dr. Samuel Christian Hahnemann; in 1755 in
Germany. Homeopathy uses many substances including herbals,
minerals and animal substances.
At the begining of...
Methods of Curing Sudden Hair Loss
The occurrence of hair loss is caused by various reasons. The
most important cause for hair loss is genetic i.e. if your
mother or father is suffering from hair loss there is a 50:50
possibility that you will suffer from hair loss as well....
Natural Skin Care Products Are The Answer To Your Skin Care Problems.
Natural skin care products, or as I prefer to call them these
days Holistically-Natural skin care products are most definitely
the only answer to responsible healthy skin care. Any effect
achieved by synthetic product can be achieved using...
|
|
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Recovering From Stroke with Acupuncture
Q: I had a stroke 7 years ago. It was due to a blood clot in the brain. I am making a good recovery, but I am curious to know if acupuncture would benefit me.
Tim
A: Tim, the best time to get acupuncture for stroke is immediately afterwards - ideally while still in the hospital, if the docs will allow it. Seven years is a long time to wait for acupuncture. But it still may help you… You won't know unless you try it.
Scalp Acupuncture
Usually scalp style acupuncture is used for stroke. Needles are "threaded" along the scalp underneath the skin. There are at least three different scalp systems (Dr. Jiao Shun Fa's original style from the 1970s, Dr. Zhu's, and Dr. Yamamoto's styles). Call local acupuncturists and find out if they have experience with scalp acupuncture.
How Many Treatments?
It may take 10-20 treatments to get results. In China, they treat patients every day. That's not financially realistic here, but 2 or 3 times per week is good. In your case - after 7 years - it may take sustained and intense stimulus to make a change.
Complementary Therapies
You can also take herbal formulas to balance out the constitutional issues that led to the stroke, and help repair the damage. Acupuncture can be combined with physical rehab. It can improve both motor function (ability to move muscles) and sensory (ability to feel). You may recover function to some degree, but in more serious strokes there may be no response.
Will it Work for Me?
It's hard to say whether an individual will respond and how much- partner with the acupuncturist - they will get to know you case thoroughly, integrate what they're doing with your other medical providers. See the acupuncturist until you hit a plateau. Then your acupuncturist may try another system or strategy.
Stroke and Acupuncture Research
What's clear from several studies is that very severe stroke patients may be less likely to respond to acupuncture. This issue has not been thoroughly researched. Typically, American researchers have used inadequate acupuncture (style, points, and frequency of treatments). They conduct and review studies using points that Chinese acupuncturists would not use, and then conclude that acupuncture doesn't work. I say, "No, it's your brain that doesn't work, because you don't do a thorough literature review before designing your studies!"
As James Rotchford, MD, (a medical doctor and acupuncturist who has reviewed hundreds of acupuncture research studies and reviews on his website, www.acubriefs.com) mentions below, there are many approaches within acupuncture. Scalp styles (there are 3 - who knows which is most effective when - a good research topic) appear to be best for neurological conditions like stroke, MS, and post-concussion syndrome. To study body acupuncture points for stroke demonstrates unfamiliarity with the work that has been done thus far.
Is the acupuncture (style, points, and frequency of treatments) studied in most research considered the most effective kind by acupuncture experts?
It is not.
Why study acupuncture points and styles that clinicians themselves don't think work?
Three possibilities come to mind:
Arrogance: "Even though Chinese have been doing acupuncture for thousands of years, they don't know anything about it." This isn't so implausible - mainstream American docs and researchers already ignore European research - why not Chinese, too? If their methodology differs from the drug-model, it's because they aren't as advanced as us. And if we disagree with the results, the methodology is criticized. Otherwise, it's fine. Psychological studies of the research review process have proven this bias.
Idiocy: It's hard to imagine that someone smart enough to do
research isn't smart enough to read the literature, but I suppose it's possible, or
Conspiracy: "Let's do the wrong acupuncture on purpose so we have proof that acupuncture doesn't work." This would be fool's work, since there is already incontrovertible evidence that it does.
If the studies suck, then why review them?
Because a review of multiple studies carries more weight than just one study. It's easier to convince people with a review.
The major issue with research reviews is that if the studies were inadequate in the first place, then the review's conclusions will be wrong. Until the methodology and study designs are improved, what's the point?
Again, we suggest researchers review the Chinese medicine literature. Rotchford advocates outcome studies rather than drug-style RCT's. In outcome studies, no placebo is used, but there is no satisfactory placebo for acupuncture research.
When acupuncture studies are done well, why aren't the results always positive?
Rotchford says, "Dr. Naeser has shown that the extent of CT demonstrated destruction does make a distinct difference in response to acupuncture. Why are Western studies equivocal when those from China and Japan so heavily support a role for acupuncture treatment in thousands of cases?
"First, the acupuncture approach is different. In the Orient, acupuncture is done daily to twice daily for maximum stimulation of the nervous system. Various experts recommend treating 3 times weekly as a minimum; more would be better.
"Second, Western studies use standard major Yang Ming and Shao Yang points. Chinese studies indicate that using scalp points alone or in addition to provide a stronger input. A newer approach, Xingnao Kaiqiao (A consciousness awakening), generated by Dr. Shi Xuemen and co workers, appears extremely attractive. They treat PC 6, GV 26, SP 6, BL 40, HT 1 (a bit distal to the usually designated point), LU 5, and LI 4 in sequence each to the point of tears (GV 26) and muscle jerking. In a series of 3200 patients, an essential cure is claimed in 58% and 90% effective improvement to the point of reasonable self sufficiency. Other points are added for pseudobulbar palsy, where good results are reported in over 300 patients. Comparing this technique to traditional Yang points and to scalp acupuncture, they denote excellent results in 76% versus 36%.
"I suggest a study such as done by Johansson's group, using Xingnao Kaiqiao, and with treatment given at least 5 days a week. Third, we must consider Qi transmission from healer to patient in any therapy, especially in acupuncture. I believe intent is essential; and the intensity of interest and empathy might create a much improved healing. Considering this, the background and training of the involved acupuncturists in a study should be noted." - from his review of "Acupuncture For Dysphagia Following Stroke." (see link below)
So, the people doing acupuncture research don't study Chinese medical acupuncture, but rather their own strange version of it - who knows where it comes from. I have no idea who's teaching them (are they teaching themselves?), or what books they are reading, if any. I'm not usually so bluntly critical of people's work, but as a body of work, I'd say that American acupuncture research has earned the distinction of being mostly useless.
About the Author
Acupuncturist, herbalist, and medical professor Brian B. Carter founded the alternative health megasite The Pulse of Oriental Medicine (http://www.PulseMed.org/). He is the author of the book "Powerful Body, Peaceful Mind: How to Heal Yourself with Foods, Herbs, and Acupressure" (November, 2004). Brian speaks on radio across the country, and has been quoted and interviewed by Real Simple, Glamour, and ESPN magazines.
|
|
|
|
|
| National Library of Medicine - National Institutes of Health |
| Part of the National Institutes of Health, the National Library of Medicine offers access to health information for consumer, patient, and physicians ... |
| www.nlm.nih.gov |
|
| Health and Medical Information produced by doctors - MedicineNet.com |
| Doctor-produced health and medical information written for you to make informed decisions about your health concerns. |
| www.medicinenet.com |
|
| Medicine in the Yahoo! Directory |
| Collection of sites for health professionals, with sections on specific disciplines, organizations, continuing education, conferences, publications, ... |
| dir.yahoo.com |
|
| MedlinePlus Health Information from the National Library of Medicine |
| Health information from the National Library of Medicine. Easy access to Medline and Health topics, medical dictionaries, directories and publications. |
| medlineplus.gov |
|
| Medicine - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia |
| Medicine is a branch of health science and the sector of public life ... The practice of medicine combines both science as the evidence base and art in the ... |
| en.wikipedia.org |
|
| Journal Home - Nature Medicine |
| Nature Medicine has a vacancy for a Locum Assistant Editor for six months. The position involves working in all aspects of the editorial process, ... |
| www.nature.com |
|
| The New England Journal of Medicine: Research & Review Articles on ... |
| The New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM) is a weekly general medical journal that publishes new medical research findings, review articles, and editorial ... |
| content.nejm.org |
|
| eMedicine Clinical Knowledge Base |
| eMedicine features up-to-date, searchable, peer-reviewed medical journals, online physician reference textbooks, and a full-text article database in 62 ... |
| www.emedicine.com |
|
| Open Directory - Health: Medicine |
| the entire directory, only in Health/Medicine. Top: Health: Medicine (11429). Description · Medical Specialties (4888); Surgery (2265) ... |
| dmoz.org |
|
| the www virtual library biosciences medicine |
| www.ohsu.edu/cliniweb/wwwvl/ - Similar pages |
|
|
| Medicine - home |
| Bimonthly journal covering the latest results in clinical investigation relevant to hospital and office practice. |
| www.md-journal.com |
|
| Institute of Medicine |
| The Institute of Medicine serves as adviser to the nation to improve health. |
| www.iom.edu |
|
| ScienceDaily: Health & Medicine News |
| Medical Research News. Health news on everything from cancer to nutrition. Full-text, images, updated daily. |
| www.sciencedaily.com |
|
| Google Directory - Health > Medicine |
| Search only in Medicine Search the Web. Medicine. Health > Medicine, Go to Directory Home. Categories. Alternative Medicine (6308) Basic Sciences (66) ... |
| www.google.com |
|
| the world wide web virtual library biosciences medicine |
| www.mcb.harvard.edu/biopages/medicine.html - Similar pages |
|
|
| PLoS Medicine - A Peer-Reviewed Open-Access Journal |
| PLoS Medicine is a peer-reviewed, international, open-access journal published ... Every issue of PLoS Medicine contains a selection of readers' responses. ... |
| medicine.plosjournals.org |
|
| Medicine On-Line - Medicine Online -The International Medical Journal |
| Medicine Online - independent and peer reviewed journal published by Priory Medical Journals - priory.com. |
| www.priory.com |
|
| Entrez PubMed |
| PubMed is a service of the US National Library of Medicine that includes over 16 million citations from MEDLINE and other life science journals for ... |
| www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov |
|
| Stanford University School of Medicine |
| Home Page of the Stanford University School of Medicine. |
| med.stanford.edu |
|
| Medicine OnLine |
| Meds.com offers medical information and education on cancer (lung cancer, colon cancer, breast cancer, leukemia) and HIV / AIDS for patients, ... |
| www.meds.com |
|
|