Knee pain can be a debilitating condition for many active adults. Sometimes pain is acute and caused by injuries to local tendons and ligaments, sometimes pain is chronic due to osteoarthritis that has developed over the years. Acupuncture and herbal medicine can help knee pain in either chronic or acute conditions by helping reduce swelling, controlling pain and even enhancing the absorption of local injections, or other medications. In a recent article, acupuncturist Jamie Starkey of the Cleveland Clinic said “Acupuncture has an analgesic effect. the brain begins to release endorphins, which are the body’s natural opiates” Acupuncture boosts the body’s anti-inflammatory defenses – endorphins, enkephalins and prostaglandins are release by the body and sent to the micro injury caused by the needle. In this way it promotes faster healing.
As a post-surgical treatment, acupuncture is a modality that patients can get started with immediately. Physical therapy obviously can’t begin immediately after recovery, but acupuncture can. The areas to be needled do not even need to be local points. An acupuncturist trained at an accredited 4-year school of Oriental Medicine is well versed in distal points that will encourage healing, calm the patient, and importantly will not disturb affected tissues that may be tender from recent surgery. Later in the course of recovery, vaso-pneumatic cupping devices may be used on the surgical site to help direct swelling and edema away from the knee and lower leg. Cupping will greatly enhance patient comfort, help restore function, and make the area look better, too!
Herbal medicine is an important component as well in any patient’s recovery from surgery, depending on their current age, health, and other prescriptions. Consumers are wising up to the dangers of over-medication, and many will not take prescribed pain medications because of their side effects and concerns over dependency. The Chinese pharmacopoeia has many herbs and classic formulas to alleviate pain, reduce swelling, and even to calm the mind. Acupuncturists in the state of Nevada where I practice and teach, and also in California where I was trained and licensed, are put through the paces of a rigorous herbal medicine program. Herbal formulas are safe, effective, food grade, and best of all, are a natural means of restoring the body to homeostasis. A trained acupuncturist will research the most appropriate formula, or can create a custom formula compounded to current FDA and USDA best practices.
Always receive your acupuncture from a licensed acupuncturist or Oriental Medicine Doctor – if your local health professional is not an OMD or LAc, but has “acupuncture” on his or her website or product literature, you owe it to yourself to ask questions and do a little research. Does a 20 to 200-hour certification compare with 3000 hours of post-graduate study? As a smart patient and careful consumer, make certain you find the best and safest medicine available.