Acupuncture
What conditions can acupuncture help with?
According to the World Health Organization and the American Academy of Medical Acupuncture, it is indicated for the following conditions:
Respiratory tract disorders
- Acute sinusitis
- Acute rhinitis
- Common cold
- Acute tonsillitis
Gastrointestinal disorders
- Acute bacillary dysentery
- Acute and chronic colitis
- Acute and chronic gastritis
- Chronic duodenal ulcer (pain relief)
- Constipation
- Diarrhea
- Gastroptosis
- Gastric hyperacidity
- Hiccup
- Paralytic ileus
- Spasm of the esophagus
Bronchopulmonary disorders
- Acute bronchitis
- Bronchial asthma (most effective in children and in patients without complicating diseases)
Neurologic disorders
- Facial palsy (early stage, ie, within 3–6 mo)
- Headache
- Intercostal neuralgia
- Meniere disease
- Migraine
- Neurogenic bladder dysfunction
- Nocturnal enuresis
- Paresis after stroke
- Peripheral neuropathies
- Sequelae of poliomyelitis (early stage, ie, within 6 mo)
- Trigeminal neuralgia
Musculoskeltal disorders
- Cervicobrachial syndrome
- Frozen shoulder
- Low back pain
- Osteoarthritis
- Sciatica
- Tennis elbow
Disorders of the mouth
- Acute and chronic pharyngitis
- Bruxism
- Gingivitis
- Temporomandibular joint derangement
- Toothache, postextraction pain
General
- Abdominal distention/flatulence
- Acute and chronic pain control
- Allergic sinusitis
- Anxiety, fright, panic
- Arthritis/arthrosis
- Bursitis, tendonitis, carpal tunnel syndrome
- Certain functional gastrointestinal disorders (nausea and vomiting,
esophageal spasm, hyperacidity, irritable bowel, etc) - Cervical and lumbar spine syndromes
- Constipation, diarrhea
- Drug detoxification
- Dysmenorrhea, pelvic pain
- Frozen shoulder
- Headache, vertigo (Meniere), tinnitus
- Insomnia
- Muscle spasms, tremors, tics, contractures
- Neuralgias (trigemnial, herpes zoster, postherpetic, other)
- Paresthesias
- Persistent hiccups
- Phantom pain
- Plantar fasciitis
- Selected dermatoses (urticaria, pruritus, eczema, psoriasis)
- Severe hyperthermia
- Sprains and contusions
- Urinary incontinence, retention (neurogenic, spastic,
adverse drug effect)