MECHANISMS OF ACUPUNCTURE IN PAIN: A PHYSIOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVE IN A CLINICAL CONTEXT

Abstract

Acupuncture is part of Traditional Chinese Medicine, a medical system with an empirical basis. A lack of scientific studies to prove the claimed effects of acupuncture has led to its rejection by many of the Western scientific community. Now that the mechanisms can be partly explained in terms of endogenous mechanisms, and the reported effects are similar or sometimes even superior to established treatments, the integration of acupuncture with conventional medicine may be possible. The effects of acupuncture are likely to devolve from physiological and/or psychological mechanisms with biological foundations, and the needle stimulation could represent the artificial activation of systems obtained by natural biological effects in functional situations. Acupuncture and some other forms of sensory stimulation trigger similar effects in man and other mammals, suggesting that they bring about fundamental physiological changes. Acupuncture stimulation, eliciting ‘de qi’, excites receptors and or nerve fibers in the stimulated tissue, which are also similarly physiologically activated by strong muscle contractions. The effects on certain organ functions are also similar to those obtained by protracted exercise. On the other hand light superficial needling, as often used during ‘sham’ acupuncture, excites cutaneous touch receptors resulting in a limbic ‘touch response’ with a suggested role in wellbeing and social bonding. The effects of acupuncture in pain