Acupuncture for Stroke Treatment

Respect in its healing qualities over the ages has brought Eastern medicine to the forefront in alternative methods of maintaining health. One of the most celebrated, successful methods of its treatment has been acupuncture.

It can be used as a relaxation technique, a mode of rehabilitation following a minor injury or an ongoing treatment following a major detriment to one’s health such as a stroke, heart attack or serious accident causing paralysis. Acupuncture has been well received in medical circles across the globe following many positive medical and scientific studies and continues to help patients as they journey down the long road to recovery.

Medical Studies on the Proving Ground – Does Acupuncture Help After a Stroke?

The studies which have cited acupuncture has a vital component in recovery are so numerous it would be impossible to list them all in a short article, but one that stands out is a study which took place in 2005. In this year, “The Center for Integrative Health, Medicine and Research” supported a study which would set out to determine if there was a positive effect after acupuncture was used in the rehabilitation of stroke patients.

A group of 29 patients who had suffered a stroke within the last 60 days had their data analyzed and the results came back stronger than expected. This particular study revealed that Eastern medicine’s long history was a strong one and it proved that not only was acupuncture “statistically significant” in providing benefits to the physical functioning of patients but also to their overall recovery when used in adjunct to conventional stroke rehabilitation measures. The pilot study also reported that stroke patients who were receiving acupuncture during their treatments demonstrated significant improvements in the recovery of motor skills and overall physical functioning.

Eastern medicine and acupuncture also stood out in another scholarly study, which focused on the effectiveness of acupuncture following a stroke. In this systematic review which appeared courtesy of the Department of Genetics and Medicine at the Shatin Hospital in Hong Kong, 100 patients aged between 41 and 75 years old were studied. 85 of these patients who had disabilities following their stroke(s) responded positively to acupuncture.

The study was well received and cited in 2002 by the American Heart Association and also by the Surgeon General. The conclusion based on this scientific research was that the meta-analysis which had taken place with stroke rehabilitation and acupuncture had a positive effect on the disabilities which were prevalent. In nearly every study analyzed, the positive citations associated with acupuncture and its helpful effects following stroke have varied from slightly positive to overwhelmingly successful.

The fact that no negative results or unimpressive responses were recorded following these specific, scientific studies is a great thing not only for the practitioners of eastern medicine, but also for the unfortunate victims of a stroke.

Light at the End of the Tunnel – Stroke Recovery Through Acupuncture

Acupuncture and massage therapy continue to produce positive effects in the recoveries of stroke patients. Continuing on into the new millennium, Eastern medicine and its practitioners clearly have no intention of slowing down in proving it as an elite form of treatment.

The scientific research that has taken place has provided one guaranteed fact which is that Eastern medicine, acupuncture and various other methods of treatment all yield positive results when employed following a stroke. As time inevitably goes by, the expansion of eastern medicine as a commonly practiced response to stable and critical conditions or minor and major injuries continues to be a testament to the long acclaimed history that this diverse field encapsulates.