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Acupuncture for Osteoarthritis

Osteoarthritis usually affects people above middle age.  It is a condition where the joints progressively break down.  Osteoarthritis can be quite a painful disease. Here is how this disease develops.

The cartilage is a layer of membrane that is found between two adjoining joints. During his younger years, a person’s cartilage helps ease the movement of the joints by acting as some sort of a lubricant between the two bones. The cartilage acts as a preventive cushion for the bones to rub against each other during movement.

As the person’s body ages, however, the wear and tear of the years causes progressive damage to the cartilage and it begins to degenerate. Cartilage that has been degenerated cannot effectively protect the bones from rubbing against each other.  So when there is movement, the friction between the bones will generate pain.  Most of the time, swelling and inflammation can also arise from the soreness.

Osteoarthritis can have several possible causes. It can be caused by overuse, injury, old age and heredity.  Osteoarthritis can strike even people in their 20s or 30s. People suffering from this disease need to talk with their doctor and be treated as soon as possible.  This is to prevent further damage to the cartilage and to relieve the swelling, soreness and pain caused by osteoarthritis.

When the affected joints become inflamed, western doctors will usually prescribe steroidal anti-inflammatory medications. These drugs have side effects especially when they are often used. Their frequent intake my even lead to the condition they are allegedly trying to treat: osteoarthritis.  This means that these drugs can exacerbate your osteoarthritis.  Because of this, doctors are using instead non-steroidal therapies as a way to treat this problem.

Acupuncture is one very good way of treating osteoarthritis. It is a natural type of treatment that absolutely does not entail the use of steroids. One other therapy is the use of NSAIMs or non-steroidal anti-inflammatory medicines.  A controlled study has revealed that 70% of subjects derived relief of pain after being treated with acupuncture.

Acupuncture is actually a very old Chinese medicinal procedure.  Western physicians are now training to become medical acupuncturists to provide their patients more options in the way they want to be treated.  Acupuncture is about the insertion of thin needles to activate the acupuncture points in the body. Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) practitioners state that the body has more than 2000 acupuncture points.  Body that has balanced energy (chi) will experience good health. The main objective of acupuncture treatment is to stimulate those acupuncture points to remove blockages so that energy (chi) can flow smoothly.

Western medicine sees the acupuncture points as part of the system of the central nervous system. When these points are stimulated, certain hormones and neurotransmitters are released that causes the body to heal itself.

When you use acupuncture to treat osteoarthritis, you will be relying less and less of your steroid based medicine. This therapy brings quick pain quickly for the patient, and enables the affected joints to heal naturally and gradually.

Amy-Sui Qun Lui is a board certified and licensed acupuncturist in Cleveland, OH and the founder of Asian Health Center.

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