How
does acupuncture work?
There are two main different
thoughts on how acupuncture works. The first
is the Eastern or Chinese philosophy. The Chinese
were the first to use acupuncture and discovered
this healing technique thousands of years ago.
Science at that time was very rudimentary and
was limited by the strict rules such as the
inability to perform an autopsy on a human being.
Therefore much of Chinese medicine was based
on observation. The Chinese determined that
there are channels or meridians that travel
throughout the body and that blockage of these
meridians can cause pain, dysfunction or disease.
To relieve these blockages, these acupoints
are stimulated by needles and can relieve different
ailments. Western or modern medicine began investigating
the role of acupuncture on the body physiologically.
They found that stimulation of the acupoints
causes the brain to release certain neurochemicals
into the body that can decrease pain and inflammation.
Does
acupuncture hurt?
There is a general phobia
in the public concerning any type of needle.
There is a difference between the needle an
acupuncturist uses and one you would get from
your medical doctor. The acupuncture needle
is so thin that you could fit 4 of them into
the barrel of a hypodermic needle. Because of
this thinness, the sensation that you may feel
is different. At times, patients do not feel
anything. At other times, they may feel a pricking
sensation that they explain as less than a mosquito
bite. Another sensation that is felt is an achiness
at the site of the acupoint. This is what the
Chinese call the "qi" (pronounced
chee). Chinese medicine states that this sensation
is the removal of the blockage occurring in
the meridian. In the case that needle acupuncture
is not an option, laser acupuncture can be used
with the same sort of results.
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Is
acupuncture or chiropractic or massage covered
by OHIP?
In the case of acupuncture
and massage therapy, there is no coverage by
OHIP. For chiropractic, OHIP covers a percentage
of the total fee per visit to a maximum of about
14 visits. Remember that most extended health
plans cover acupuncture and chiropractic and
massage therapy.
I've
heard that people can go to chiropractors for
the rest of their life. Why would anyone want
to do that?
Because they want to
stay healthy, that's why! Most patients who
come for chiropractic treatment initially come
because they have a problem. Either they've
pulled their back or have headaches or have
some sort of pain. Initially, the treatments
are fairly frequent but as their pain level
decreases and their subluxations decrease the
time between treatments increases. With the
absence of pain and the return of optimum biomechanical
health, the patient is recommended to continue
with wellness or maintenance visits which can
range from one visit every 2 to 4 weeks. This
preventative treatment can prevent any minor
problems from becoming major catastrophes. Think
about maintenance visits like going to the gym.
Do you stop going after you lose the 20 lbs
you wanted to lose?
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I've
had jaw pain for quite awhile now. Is there
anything that you can do to relieve this problem?
The temporomandibular
joint or jaw joint is one of the most complex
joints in the body. Medical and dental treatment
for this problem can range from medications
such as anti-inflammatories, mouth guards to
decrease grinding at night to surgical operations.
The Markham Pain Clinic has a great deal of
experience in the treatment of jaw problems.
A combination of soft tissue work to the muscles
of mastication (eating muscles), joint mobilization
and laser acupuncture (to decrease inflammation)
works well to not only decrease jaw pain but
to prevent the recurrence of the pain in the
future.
Do
I need to go to a medical doctor first before
I see you?
We encourage that your
family doctor stay abreast of your health however
doctors of chiropractic are considered primary
care physicians and do not require their patients
to be referred by a medical doctor.
I've
heard that traction works well for herniated
discs. Is that true?
There has been
a lot of research concerning the use of traction
in the treatment of herniated discs. A vertebral
disc is a shock-absorbing structure found between
the vertebrae of the spine. It is like a jelly
donut with a hard outside core filled with a
jelly center. A herniated disc occurs when the
jelly leaks outside the core and this can press
down on the nerves of the back and is one of
the main causes of sciatica. Traction works
by decreasing the pressure on the spine and
can cause the "jelly" that has leaked
out to return to the inside of the disc. The
Markham Pain Clinic has a traction table that
is very effective in the treatment of herniated
discs.
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