Moving Acupuncture to the Frontline of Military Medical Care: A Feasibility Study

Abstract

Background: Currently, opioids are the predominately prescribed treatment for wounded warriors being transported by the United States Air Force aeromedical evacuation system. Objective: It is not known whether Battlefield Acupuncture (BFA), a type of ear acupuncture, would be an acceptable and utile therapy for patients and medical staff for pain control in the aeromedical evacuation system. The primary aim of this study was to examine the feasibility of introducing BFA into the aeromedical evacuation system. Design and Setting: This was a feasibility and observational study involving patients with pain who were treated with BFA while being transported by the aeromedical evacuation system from the Landsthul Regional Medical Center (LRMC), in Landstuhl, Germany, to Joint Base Andrews (JBA), in Maryland. Participants: The participants were patients with pain who were being transported from LRMC to JBA and nurses and physicians providing the BFA treatment for these patients. Intervention: The intervention was BFA. Main Outcome Measures: The outcome sought was knowledge of the feasibility and acceptability of BFA trial among the medical staff members and the patients. Results: It was feasible to train nurses without any previous acupuncture knowledge or skills to implement BFA. In addition, medical staff members stated that the trial did not interfere with their preflight duties or during the flight. Patients reported an average pain rating of 4.07 before BFA and pain scores 1 hour post treatment and post flight of 2.17 and 2.76, respectively (p<000.1). Conclusions: BFA is a feasible acupuncture technique to be performed within the aeromedical evacuation system without interfering with operational medical duties. Significant pain relief was experienced by those patients who elected to receive BFA to relieve their pain.