Stroke recovery improved with acupuncture

I wonder how Charlie Daniels feels about needles? A lot of needles.

Charlie recently experienced a mild stroke. Apparently he still has some numbness in his left hand, but he’s well enough to continue his touring schedule.

But Charlie, like every stroke patient, needs to be diligent about watching for signs of a second stroke. As I mentioned last week, of all stroke risk factors, none rank higher than having already had a stroke.

After I sent you that e-Alert, a friend of mine mentioned that acupuncture is helpful in stroke recovery.

A quick search produced a 2005 study reported in Acupuncture Today.

Researchers recruited 29 patients who experienced weakness on one side of the body caused by a recent stroke. For two weeks, half the patients received three hours of physical therapy daily. The other half received the same therapy along with daily acupuncture treatments.

In the acupuncture group, improvements in lower extremity motor function were significantly greater than the control group. Lower extremity joint pain was also relieved to a greater degree in the acupuncture group.

When researchers compared functional independence scores, those in the acupuncture group scored higher in all measurements of seven daily-living activities.

The eight acupuncturists who participated in this study were all certified and had a minimum of one year of clinical experience. You can find listings for acupuncturists with the same level of expertise on the website for the National Certification Commission for Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine (nccaom.org).

To Your Good Health,

Jenny Thompson

Source:
“New Study Suggests Acupuncture Can Improve Recovery, Physical Functioning in Stroke Patients” Acupuncture Today, Vo. 6, No. 4, April 2005, acupuncturetoday.com