Medical acupuncture
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Medical acupuncture · Oct 2017
ReviewDoes Ear Acupuncture Have a Role for Pain Relief in the Emergency Setting? A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.
Objective: Ear acupuncture might be the form of acupuncture best suited to improving acute pain management in the emergency department (ED). The primary aim of this review was to assess the analgesic efficacy of ear acupuncture in the ED. Secondary outcomes included measures of patient satisfaction, adverse effects, cost, administration techniques, and reduction of medication usage. ⋯ Significant study bias and heterogeneity were found. Conclusions: While study numbers are limited, ear acupuncture, either as stand-alone or as-an-adjunct technique, significantly reduced pain scores and has potential benefits for use in the ED. Further studies will define acupuncture's role and if it reduces use of analgesic medications.
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Medical acupuncture · Oct 2017
Integrating Acupuncture for the Management of Costochondritis in Adolescents.
Background: Costochondritis is a common condition involving inflammation of the costochondral or chondrosternal joints. Conventional management of costochondritis includes pain medications, but these do not provide full recovery in all patients. There is limited information on adjunctive acupuncture for pediatric costochondritis. ⋯ Patient demographics, Numerical Rating Scale, and the Brief Pain Inventory were recorded. Results: All patients demonstrated satisfactory symptomatic reduction following acupuncture treatment. Conclusions: Integrating acupuncture with conventional medicine appeared to reduce the costochondritis symptoms in the adolescent patients.