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Acupuncture improves post surgery recovery. |
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Recent research is showing that acupuncture can be very useful in assisting recovery from surgery.
Studies have found that acupuncture; reduces pain, relieves itching, lessens dizziness, settles nausea and reduces urinary retention. All of these effects combine to produce a better post operative result than pain medication alone.
Dr. Tong J. Gan, a professor and vice chairman of anaesthesiology at Duke University Medical centre, in Durham, N.C and his team found that acupuncture was of benefit following many types of surgery.
According to David P. Martin, an anesthesiologist at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn. Acupuncture is becoming increasingly accepted by both physicians and patients. The technique can be helpful whether it is used to lower the level of morphine or other opioid painkiller, or whether it is used to relieve nausea. Often, he said, "people prefer to have pain to throwing up."
Dr Gan's findings indicate that acupuncture could reduce urinary retention by 3.5 times. This is an important finding as urinary retention is uncomfortable for the patient and using a catheter to relieve it carries a risk of infection. |
