Acupuncture Reduces MS Symptoms and Improves Quality of Life

I'm going to be speaking to members of the Asheville MS Support Group on Thursday June 9th, 1:30-2:30 at West End Bakery on Haywood Road. In preparation I spent afternoon yesterday googling to see what is on the Internet showing acupuncture's effectiveness in treating MS. I posted many links on my facebook page and thought I would also include them on my blog so that they could be easily referenced in the future.

The MS Trust, a charity in the UK includes this thoughtful discussion about acupuncture for treating MS. Acupuncturist and author Jill Brooks includes a list of MS symptoms that respond well and those that have a mixed efficacy for acupuncture treatment.

Alien Sheng sums up acupuncture benefits for MS patients for the American Chronicle:

Acupuncture treatments for Multiple Sclerosis have had much success in reducing pain and decreasing spasticity. Another area of success is improved bladder and bowel control. The reduction of stress and the improved feeling of well being contribute to an improvement in quality of life. The acupuncture treatments must be given frequently in order to maintain the improvements of symptoms, but Multiple Sclerosis is known for its cycles of remission. During periods of remission, the frequency of the acupuncture treatments can be reduced.

This Acupuncture Today article discusses the use of scalp acupuncture for MS patients. They are many styles of acupuncture, including a number of different systems for using the scalp to map out the body. In one scalp system commonly taught in acupuncture colleges, to which the authors refer, there are motor and tremor lines on the scalp. Certain areas on the lines relate to different parts of the body: arms, legs, hands and so forth. I have used successfully used scalp acupuncture for various motor problems, including MS, Bell's Palsy, and Parkinson's disease. In this article the authors cite several remarkable case studies documenting immediate improvement in MS patients using scalp acupuncture.

Drs. Kopsky and Hesselink of the Institute of Neuroacupuncture in the Neatherlands discuss two cases of MS patients with bladder dysfunction (a common problem) which responded well to electoacupuncture. In electroacupuncture, a battery device with wires and clips are hooked up to strategic acupuncture points to increase stimulation of the needles during the treatment. Electroacupuncture is often used in pain treatments. I use it for labor induction and with scalp acupuncture for neurological disorders. Results are satisfying.


Fellow PCOM alumni, Kimberly Thompson, LAc (from my acupuncture college Pacific College of Oriental Medicine) discusses various Chinese pattern differentiations and applicable acupuncture points. In Chinese medicine, we use an individualized diagnosis method. I discuss briefly go into this concept on the Chinese Medicine page of my website. I also explain pattern diagnosis when describing treatment for specific conditions in blog post and articles.


I found a couple of instances where MS patients described there own experiences with acupuncture. The MS Resource Center in the UK discusses Kathy Kelvnik, a hospital coordinator who MS was so advanced she was rendered unable to work until acupuncture got her back on her feet again

Kathy Kevnick sought Dr. David Bilstrom's help after her MS left her unable to work. She couldn't walk. Steroids no longer worked. Neither did chemotherapy.
Weekly acupuncture sessions have helped Kevnick eliminate 80% of her medications and return to work full time as a hospital coordinator."It's changed my life. I had medical bills of $42,000 the year before I started acupuncture. Now my bills are acupuncture & massage therapy.

On Acupuncture.com Duane Perron tells his compelling story with MS and acupuncture treatment. He sums it up,"Finding a good acupuncturist is like finding a good doctor....and it seems you have finally found your angel." KB

Duke Univ Study Says Acupuncture Beats Pills for Headache

At last! When acupuncture first publicly arrived on the scene in the US in the 70's, the medical establishment's first concern was to be certain that the 'new' therapy was safe and wouldn't harm the public. After the millennium the safety concerns began to be put aside following a landmark NIH study in 1997 that confirmed acupuncture is safe & effective and encouraged researchers to turn to efficacy.

Most of the researchers seem reluctant to verify that acupuncture is highly efficacious, consequently the studies' highest accolades seem to be acknowledging that acupuncture can match western medicine in terms of effectiveness.

Duke University has a integrative medical department that is in the forefront of the field. It has recently released a study showing acupuncture is more effective than drugs for headaches. This is the first of its kind that i have seen. the study documented 62% relief in acupuncture patients compared to 45% effectiveness for those using drug therapy. Here's a 3min video from Duke University talking about the findings and interviewing an acupuncture migraine headache patient.

This is an article I have written discussing how acupuncture treats headaches. A few older studies are included. KB

Photo: RambergMediaImages , Flickr Creative Commons 2.0

FDA Warns Drug Co's About Misleading & False Advertising

Several years ago i began noticing a trend where new patients were looking to Chinese medicine to avoid side effects of drug treatments. The FDA at that time began requiring that the drug co's list drug risk and side effects in advertisements. since then, it's become apparent to the public how numerous the potential negative side effects and risks of pharmaceutical drugs are. Now almost all of my new patients cite drug side effects as a top reason for not wanting to proceed with a western medical approach to treatment and for their reason for coming to see me instead.

the drug co's don't want to list the potential risks and side effects of their drugs for obvious reasons: it tarnishes the brand. so they avoid doing so.

according to this report on NaturalNews.com the FDA has sent out warning letters to 4 drug cos about violating the rules, and engaging in false and misleading advertising. Actually, the FDA has been sending out a lot of warning letters about these issues.

when Chinese medicine first came on the scene, one of the first questions the medical establishment in this country wanted answered was "Is it safe?", and the early studies were preformed as much to ensure public safety as they were to show efficacy. TCM (Traditional Chinese Medicine) passed the safety standard with flying colors, and i don't believe safety is even a question in people's minds anymore. i think the top questions now are "Does it hurt?" and "Is it effective? (Does it work?)"

the FAQs page of my website: AcupunctureAsheville.com answers all of the preliminary questions, and more. The resources page contains articles & studies discussing effectiveness of treatment of specific conditions on the Treatable Conditions List, and this blog has many studies about efficacy of Chinese medicine.