Use of Acupuncture In The U.S Military On The Rise

The epidemic of prescription drug use in the United States has led the US military to take a serious look at the effectiveness of its pain and PTSD protocols.

Acupuncture Use Increases

In military bases across America and overseas, acupuncture is being put to use.

Used primarily for PTSD and the treatment of pain, acupuncture is increasing for active duty members.

In particular, auricular acupuncture is gaining a lot of traction for its ability to be performed quickly and in unstable circumstances.

Battlefield Acupuncture

Retired Air Force Colonel Richard Niemtzow, MD has coined the term “Battlefield Acupuncture” from an already existing pain protocol within the Chinese medical framework.

He is now teaching physicians how to integrate this therapy into standard treatment protocols for deployed soldiers.

The amount of prescriptions for painkillers quadrupled in the eight years between 2001 and 2009.

Since these prescriptions are for long-term conditions like chronic pain and PTSD, soldiers coming home look forward to many years of these drugs.

Acupuncture Reducing The Use of Opioids

“The main purpose of this project is to use acupuncture to reduce the use of opioids,” Niemtzow explained.

“Is there a rapid return to duty?

Is it cost effective?

Can it replace certain addictive pain medications?”

Lt. Col. Dan Ferris gets regular acupuncture treatment for chronic back pain.

These tiny needles in his ears allow him to continue flying while deployed in Afghanistan.

Opioids would make him unfit for flying, and effectively remove him from duty.

“Acupuncture helps with the pain, to the point of removing it,” Ferris said recently from Kandahar Air Field.

Critics have cited a lack of empirical evidence supporting claims that acupuncture can treat pain as effectively as opioids.

But in the eyes of many, the results speak for themselves.

Dr. Ron White writes: “There’s no risk; and it provides benefit.

Our goal, my end result, is function.

If you come to me complaining that you can’t move, you can’t sleep at night, you can’t work, and six months later, I have you playing, sleeping and back to work, I don’t care how it works.”

Future Implications

We could eventually see acupuncture protocols available at all military bases and medical centres.

And because acupuncture and Chinese herbal medicine work towards recovery, we could be seeing a generation of soldiers made whole and strong again—without the dependence on opioids.

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