Acupuncture Adverse Response

My patient is a 30-year-old mother of two who presented with symptoms of fatigue, cold intolerance, and tearfulness. She was later diagnosed with Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis six months after the birth of her second child. With the addition of a thyroid hormone, prescribed by her doctor, the patient is doing well and living an active life with her husband and two children.

The clinical effectiveness of acupuncture has remained inclusive and continued to attract heated debates. Many trying acupuncture often hold the belief that acupuncture may help or entirely due to cultural curiosity. The majority of studies, in particular the German randomised controlled trials, show that acupuncture has better physiological effects for chronic pain conditions than the conventional standard therapy.

Acupuncture is a traditional Chinese medical treatment for multiple issues, and is characterized by needles being strategically inserted into pressure points on the body to relieve symptoms. This is believed to reset you qi or life force within your body. This practice is carried out by acupuncturists all over the world. In western medicine, while we don’t know the exact mechanism of action, it is thought to increase blood flow and raise natural painkiller levels in the body. This rise in natural painkillers and increased blood flow are the major benefits of acupuncture. The risks are very few, there is a very limited chance of organ damage, infection, or soreness after a treatment (Mayo Clinic 2012).

Vasoconstriction- The sympathetic nervous system on the brain causes the heart rate to increase making your veins constrict. This is called vasoconstriction and the blood flow will be directed right to the muscle to help it work harder. Temperature increases to help the flow of blood around the body. Your reflexes will be quicker and your muscles tense. This facilitates the blood carrying oxygen and removing waste products.

Electrolytic damage to the Sm II area of the cerebral cortex could weaken the effect of acupuncture (Xu., et al cited in Leung., Ping-Chung, 4).

The study by Ma et al., (2006) examined the treatment methods of physical therapy, acupuncture, and a combination of physical therapy and acupuncture to see which treatment method was more beneficial in patients with spontaneous frozen shoulder over a four week period (Ma et al., 2006). The study consisted of 75 participants with spontaneous frozen shoulder pain for at least three months, unable to lift their arm more than 135 degrees, and agreed to proceed with the medical treatments that were designed for this study (Ma et al., 2006). Thirty participants were randomly selected into the control group received physical therapy only. The control group consisted of fifteen minute hot pack application, five to ten minutes of joint mobilization,

I now know that the hypotension is caused by vasodilatation because the sympathetic nerves that control tone are blocked. Peripheral

Acupuncture has been claimed as an effective treatment for certain chronic pain. The National Institutes of Health (NIH) Consensus Development Conference Statement stated in November 1997 that that there is "clear evidence for acupuncture’s efficacy for treating postoperative and chemotherapy nausea and vomiting, the nausea of pregnancy, and postoperative dental pain." The NIH panel concludes that acupuncture may be an

The sympathetic reflexes result from sympathetic fibres beginning in the brainstem through the spinal cord and spinal ganglia towards the heart. Heart muscles such as Purkinje fibres elicit a rhythm when the heart’s pacemaker, the sinoatrial node, is unable to do so. Question 2c: Explain how these two mechanisms of vagal escape would differ in an isolated heart preparation such as the one used in this simulated experiment versus a heart in a live animal/human. (2 marks) ANSWER:

Acupuncture uses tiny, sterile needles to stimulate acupoints or areas of the body that are believed to stimulate self-healing (University of California San Diego Center for Integrative Medicine [UCSD], 2017). Traditional Chinese medicine has used the technique of acupuncture for over 3,000 years (UCSD, 2017). The scientific explanation of the effects that acupuncture has on the body relates to the needles stimulating "the nervous system to release chemicals" that can either "change the experience of pain" or "influence the body's internal regulating system" (American Academy of Medical Acupuncture [AAMA], 2017). It is used to treat many different conditions and is not considered to be very painful.

Post orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTS) is an autonomic disorder characterized by orthostatic intolerance, such as, light headiness, fatigue, sweating, tremor, anxiety, exercise intolerance, and fluctuation in blood pressure in either direction. A person with POTS will experience heart rates that increase 30 beats or more per minute upon standing and/or increase to 120 beats or more per minute upon standing (Grubb, 2000). These exaggerated heart rate increases usually occur within 10 minutes of rising. These symptoms of POTS may lead patient limitation of activity; for example, chronic debilitating disorders, prolonged bed rest, or medication that impair autonomic function that may have to be excluded (Agarwal, Garg, Ritch, Sarkar, 2007).

Pain is one of the major reasons people seek for health care. Millions of people suffer from acute and chronic pain such as arthritis, migraine headache, and back pain. Pain can affect not only the individual experiencing it, but also every person around them (Lewis, Dirksen, Heitkemper, & Bucher, 2014). Many people are seeking medical procedure and medications to decrease the pain. Pain can be managed by both pharmacologic and non-pharmacologic methods based on pain assessment. Patients with pain often dissatisfied with pharmacological methods and turn to non-pharmacological method to manage their symptoms (Lizhou, Skinner, McDonough, Mabire, & Baxter, 2015), therefore, nurse should have basic knowledge

There are three systems that play an essential part in homeostatic response to intravascular volume reduction, these include; sympathetic nervous system, cardiovascular system, and neuroendocrine system. Adrenaline, noradrenaline, angiotensin II, and antidiuretics hormones assist to sustain cardiac output (CO) and sufficient tissue perfusion to the brain and the heart. Compensated, decompensated and irreversible are the 3 phases of hypovolaemic shock. Compensated shock phase is when there is a decrease in blood pressure identified by baroreceptors located in the aortic arch and carotid sinus that stimulate sympathetic output. Increased levels of catecholamines create an effect of increased heart rate, myocardial contractility, and vasoconstriction

This article is seen as reliable as it was written by two authors who hold educated degrees. This article provides knowledge on the challenges of neuropathic pain treat-ment and how multimodal approaches are required for managing neuropathic pain effec-tively (Williams, 2006). It is important that nurses realise that treatment of neuropathic pain is challenging and that multidisciplinary approaches are required such as drug ther-apy and other various interventional procedures such as acupuncture (Brooker & Waugh, 2013). Although evidence shows that acupuncture can be a useful alternative treatment, further research is required in order to evaluate the efficacy of acupuncture as a treat-ment for neuropathic pain conditions (Ju, Wang, Cui, Yao,

Acupuncture addresses the underlying causes of migraines, thus preventing future attacks. Although the triggers of a migraine differ from person to person, migraines follow a common pattern of constriction and dilation of blood vessels on the surface of the brain, followed by the release of certain chemicals (such as prostaglandins and serotonin)