Low Back Pain
Low back pain is probably the most common health problem in Ireland, and the reason for a medical doctor to refer a patient to an acupuncture clinic.
In my experience, acupuncture not only reduces pain, it promotes the healing process by bringing a stronger flow of blood and energy (Qi) to the affected area. Because acupuncture can affect the release of endorphins in the brain, people often find that acupuncture treatments reduce stress and produce a feeling of well-being, in addition to controlling their pain.
Most people probably think that back pain is back pain, but it is important to distinguish between acute low back pain and chronic low back pain. Type of treatment, length of treatment, and treatment outcomes will vary, depending on the kind of back pain you have.
Acute low back pain
If you have just injured yourself, and come in to have an acupuncture treatment right away, you will usually see very quick results.
Recently I saw a man who had injured himself two days before when he tried to lift a heavy chair. He had never experienced back trouble previously. His pain was so bad that he could hardly get out of bed or go to the bathroom. He needed assistance to get up on the treatment table and take his shoes off. I used a combination of Acupuncture and KORE therapy techniques and he immediately felt much better, got off the treatment table by himself, and could bend over to put his shoes back on. Within the week, he had two more treatments, and totally recovered. Patients are quite often amazed at how quickly they improve with treatment, and tell me it’s like a miracle.
The good news about acute low back pain is that you really do not need many treatments in order to have a satisfactory result. The bad news is that I rarely see acute cases. Generally, by the time people decide to try acupuncture, they have already tried everything else, and acupuncture is the last resort.
Chronic low back pain
This is a different story because it takes more time and more intensive treatment to alleviate pain and promote healing. When a health problem has become entrenched over time, it takes longer to bring it under control. Generally, the longer you have had something, the more serious it becomes and the longer it takes to fix. With chronic conditions, acupuncture treatments have a cumulative effect, building on each other over time.
After years of low back pain, the body will have adapted and so the structure will first have to be fixed. The good part is that you can usually see positive change after a few weeks of treatment. I’m not saying that the condition is cured in a few weeks, but you can tell that you are responding to treatment, and that your symptoms are improving. Some people feel better after 4-5 acupuncture treatments, while some of them need 7-8 treatments.
Let’s say that you have severe back pain. Your doctor says you have at least two herniated discs, and you are scheduled for surgery in a month. At this stage, is there any point in trying acupuncture?
I had a case several months ago that shows how helpful acupuncture and KORE therapy can be. A woman was referred to my clinic by her doctor for pain control while she was waiting for surgery, which was scheduled in twenty days. Her husband brought her in, because she was in too much pain to drive. After having about eight acupuncture treatments, she returned to her doctor for a pre-operative check-up. Her pain had been reduced considerably, and her mobility and range of motion were much improved. The doctor was surprised to see how much better she was. After a thorough examination, he decided to cancel the surgery and let her continue with acupuncture treatments for another month.
I am not saying that acupuncture or KORE therapy is a substitute for surgery. Some people will need to have an operation to relieve severe back conditions. But most people who try acupuncture and KORE therapy will experience improvement in pain levels and mobility, and some of them may be able to avoid surgery.
Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) has several effective modalities for treating low back pain. The most common is acupuncture, which is highly effective for both acute and chronic low back pain. Acupuncture is often combined with electro-stimulation, where a machine that produces a mild electric current is attached to the acupuncture needles with clips. The frequency and intensity of the electric current depend on the condition of the patient.
Moxibustion is a TCM practice that goes back hundreds of years. A particular plant of the Artemisia family is processed into a concentrated form, and then burned, like a stick of incense. It can be held above the surface of the skin, and it has a deeply warming effect.
Chinese herbs and herbal formulas are also a very important TCM modality. In China, all of the chronic low back patients are treated with herbal formulas and acupuncture, and even the acute low back patients will often get an herbal prescription. Herbs are important because they have a very strong effect on correcting internal imbalances.
The reason herbs are given to chronic low back pain patients is because this kind of pain is seen as a symptom of a deeper internal imbalance. A number of TCM patterns such as Kidney deficiency, energy (Qi) or Yang deficiency, Cold Accumulation, meridian obstruction, and others will have chronic low back pain as a symptom. Ideally, acupuncture, herbs, moxibustion and KORE therapy would be used in combination, as needed, to open blocked meridians, promote the flow of Qi and blood, and tonify the deficiencies and degeneration that can come with age and stress.
