Acupuncture—the Alternative Prescription

While much of the medical community focuses on the rapidly expanding field of personalized and genetically based medicine, gender-based medicine is a form of customized medical care that typically receives less-than-frequent attention. This issue of Medical Acupuncture seeks to reverse that trend by highlighting a variety of research and treatment considerations specifically designed for the female patient.

Are these considerations just a passing “fad,” worthy only of transitory thought? Well, a question was asked by the National Research Council's 2001 report: “Front Matter: Exploring the Biological Contributions to Human Health. Does Sex Matter?” ¹ The answer was a resounding “yes”! Gender does matter—not just in the more obvious sense, but from a clinical and/or therapeutic perspective, one's genetic and/or biological gender can truly have a significant influence on the bioavailability, dose–response curves, pharmacokinetics, and therapeutic indices^1,2 of a number of medicinal agents.

Add to this, the statement from the National Women's Health Network ³ that “women's normal physiological changes…should not be unduly medicalized,” and one has an excellent foundation for the use of medical acupuncture as a truly alternative, if not complementary prescription! (I will shortly explain how gender-based medicine and acupuncture are linked together.)

That being said, restoring genuine health usually involves more than merely considering all the nuances associated with prescribing an appropriate medication. This is particularly true in this emerging era of highly advanced diagnostic technologies. Also notable is the increasing use of medical robots in a variety of surgical and nonsurgical settings. Finally, there's the often underappreciated value of simply taking a few moments to truly listen to how a patient relates the telling of his/her medical relevant story, making note of both what was said, and what may not have been said. The latter, in particular, is a key element associated with the practice of acupuncture and, even more importantly, with the art of healing. Yet, it is sad to say that, in this current era in which technological innovation is literally exploding with new and emerging developments on a nearly daily basis, many of these foundational tenets—which have been the underpinnings of the ancient art of medical acupuncture—are often lost in the practice of more “modern” medicine.

So, how does one relate the contemporary concepts of gender-based medicine and women's health to the ancient practice of acupuncture? The answer resides in the elegant simplicity associated with the art of medical acupuncture. Consider for example, the frequently cited, 2012 list of “Women's Top 5 Health Concerns,” ⁴ which begins with heart disease, followed by breast cancer, osteoporosis, depression, and autoimmune disease. For patients with each of these conditions, there are opportunities for acupuncture to be used in a clinically complementary manner—be it for facilitating smoking cessation, weight reduction, or ameliorating the effects of natural or surgically induced menopausal symptoms. Acupuncture is also known to be helpful for addressing a variety of pain-related conditions, including relief of acute and/or chronic pain associated with certain types of osteoporotic fractures. Moreover, acupuncture can, in some instances, be used as an adjunct for alleviating the signs and symptoms of depression. Finally, acupuncture can be exceedingly useful in addressing some of the sequelae associated with certain autoimmune diseases—such as by treating neuropathic pain or helping to facilitate the restoration of function after certain types of strokes.

The current environment is such that there is a now a unique opportunity to promote a more positive and widespread recognition—particularly among individuals whose primary focus is on the practice of conventional, Western medicine—that acupuncture can be used for addressing such a diverse array of gender-specific conditions. The fact that acupuncture can generally be rendered at a comparably low cost, without evoking any drug–drug interactions simply cannot be underestimated. Even more importantly, by “marrying” the practice of medical acupuncture with the delivery of modern medicine, we can literally give our patients the “best of both worlds,” while simultaneously restoring the age-old, but truly timeless skill associated with the “laying on of hands,” and of listening to patients and their stories. For all these reasons and more, acupuncture and its related modalities, comprise the alternative prescription whose time has truly come!