Acupuncture “dose”

Every treatment should have a proper dose or dosage to reach the effect, medication does, and acupuncture does.

For Acupuncture, in recent years, especially in north America,many patients and acupuncturists seem reach some-kind of a “consensus” in how acupuncture should be used in daily treatment, it looks like:

1. use smaller needles, such as 0.14-0.16 mm in needle diameter, gauge 40-42;
2. insert in less than 0.5 inch, or 1 cm;
3. use more needles;
4. 30-45 minutes;
5. once or twice per weeks.

How often? or how many sessions in a period of time?  according to 2012 National Health Interview Survey, most of patients for acupuncture did NOT get enough sessions’ treatments. A paper mentioned, there were only 38% acupuncture patients getting 6 or more treatments in that year- if we consider such patients continuously saw a healthcare professional to treat their illness or disorder by acupuncture, in stead of getting acupuncture intermittently – the gap was more than one or two weeks.

In China, patients usually get deeper (more than one inch in many body area) acupuncture by “big” needles such as needle diameter 0.35mm (gauge 28) or 0.40mm (gauge 26). Once a day for 10 sessions in two weeks as one treatment course. It seems more effective.

However, the bigger in needle size (in diameter), the more painful. This may affect many patients’ acceptance to acupuncture. For some illness or disorders, smaller needles also effective, but for some other disorders or illness, smaller needles and shallow needling will not be effective.

On other hand, we should aware of age of patients, the reaction of patients, and different status in same patient. Younger patient may have quicker and bigger effect than the older patients. If a patient is very sensitive to acupuncture, smaller stimulation also can get bigger results.

Also, for acupuncture, the damage of nerve path may causes a difficult/weak to get the acupuncture effectiveness. So, in stroke patients or other neurological disorders/illness, acupuncture stimulation may need more, either in actually stimulation techniques or other related techniques, for instance, suggestion, encouraging, leaded exercises, etc.

CHINESE GAUGE	JAPANESE GAUGE	ACTUAL SIZE	COLOR (SEIRIN)
44	00 (02)	.12mm	Dark Green
42	0 (01)	.14mm	Lime Green
40	1	.16mm	Red
38	2	.18mm	Ivory (Yellow)
36	3	.20mm	Blue
34	4	.22mm	Pink
32	5	.25mm	Purple
30	8	.30mm	Brown
28	10	.35mm	*
26	12	.40mm	*

 

CHINESE LENGTH	KOREAN/JAPANESE	ACTUAL SIZE (INCHES)
7mm	*	1/4″
13mm	15mm	1/2″
25mm	30mm	1″
40mm	40mm	1 ½”
50mm	50mm	2″
60mm	60mm	2½”
75mm	*	3″
100mm	*	4″
125mm	*	5″
150mm	*	6″

 

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