1. East and West Conflict on Treatment and Cause
Western medicine and Eastern traditional medicine, acupuncture in specific, view the cause of neurological diseases differently. In Western medicine, neurodegenerative disorders such as Alzheimer's, and the consequences of a stroke and Parkinson's, involve the death of cells and withering of nerve cells in the brain. There is no cure for these disorders and the focus for treatment works primarily with the symptoms. In Eastern traditional acupuncture, the cause is seen as coming from the kidney and bone marrow. Treatment encourages salvation of the brain cells.
2. Traditional Chinese Medicine
Traditional Chinese medicine's philosophy of acupuncture views that the heart contains the mind. If the heart functions improperly or has a weakness, then the mind has problems, too. The kidney is the house of the will. Effecting the will causes the subject to forget speech they knew. Blood stagnation, phlegm obstruction, and an insufficient amount of kidney essence leave the mind disabled.
3. New Research on Acupuncture and Alzheimer's
There are many alternative methods that slow the effects of Alzheimer's disease. Some of these are use of vitamins and antioxidants, nicotine patches, and acupuncture. Recently new research released at the World's Alzheimer's Conference showed that treatment with acupuncture increased motor skills, cognitive function, verbal skills and mood.
4. Acupuncture Studies
The first study took place at Wellesley College. Dr. Nancy Lombardo and her team studied 11 patients, one had vascular dementia and 10 had Alzheimer's. Three months of treatment, twice a week resulted in improvement in the Mini-Mental Status Exam for 2 patients. Four had substantial improvement in their scores for mood on several tests and one improved in the ability to fluently name objects. There was no control group for the study. The researchers felt that the improvement was notable in the patients. The second study, conducted by Dr. Kao at the University of Hong Kong, used eight patients. These patients had mild to moderate Alzheimer's. The eight acupoints received needling, four on the scalp and one on each wrist and foot. There were treatment cycles that lasted 30 minutes for seven days. Then the client got three days off and a second seven-day session began. This lasted for 30 days. The TCM symptom checklist and MMSE exam showed significant improvement for the patients in the area of memory, attention span, orientation, the ability to name objects, follow verbal commands, follow written commands and even write a sentence.
5. The Jury is Still Out
The studies done on acupuncture as a treatment for Alzheimer's, while hopeful, are still small and relatively inconclusive. The upside of the study encourages the family and victim of Alzheimer's. There were no negative reactions to the application of acupuncture for those studied. This addition to treatment may not work for everyone, but it certainly doesn't hurt. Until scientists find a cure for Alzheimer's, acupuncture may be worth a try as a supplement to regular treatment.
Member Comments