Acupuncture Reduces Post-Op Pain: Studies

Acupuncture before or during surgery can reduce post-operative pain, researchers have found. Patients who received the nontraditional treatment reported less pain after various surgeries, needed less pain medication and suffered fewer side effects from the medication they took, according to 15 clinical studies reviewed by the team. "The use of acupuncture is still very under-appreciated," said the lead researcher.

"Western doctors are typically not trained. Practitioners need to have an open mind."  The findings, presented at a conference of the American Society for Anesthesiology in San Francisco yesterday, were culled from studies deemed to be the most carefully controlled. They included results from abdominal, orthopedic and gynecological procedures." (More medicine stories.)