Acupuncture can be defined as the insertion of needles into specific points on the body to cause a desired healing effect.

Conditions that can be treated with Acupuncture

Acupuncture is effective in treating a wide variety of medical conditions. It is known to have positive effects on all of the major physiological systems of the body. Some of the more commonly treated ailments include; musculoskeletal issues (arthritis, hip dysplasia, intervertebral disc disease), neurologic problems (epilepsy, and vestibular disease), gastrointestinal problems (vomiting, diarrhea, indigestion, and megacolon), anxiety disorders (separation anxiety, lick granulomas, and excessive grooming/ psychogenic alopecia), respiratory problems (asthma and sinusitis), hormonal imbalances (Cushing’s Disease, diabetes, and age related urinary incontinence)
This is only a partial list illustrating some of the more common applications of acupuncture in veterinary medicine. If your pet is suffering from a condition not listed above, please contact us to discuss whether acupuncture would be an appropriate choice for your pet’s particular situation.

Benefits of Acupuncture Treatment

In general, the benefits of acupuncture include pain relief, balancing of the immune system, stimulating repair of damaged tissue, balancing of hormones and neurotransmitters, relaxation and an “improved sense of well being”. Acupuncture can be used in conjuction with any treatments that your pet is already receiving (medications, surgery, etc.). It is also a viable alternative treatment when there is concern about side effects of a drug treatment (for example, if a pet has liver or kidney issues, there may be concern about using standard drug treatments for arthritis pain and inflammation). It can be beneficial to add acupuncture when the patient is not responding to medical and/or surgical treatment, or when response to treatment is not as expected. In these cases, using acupuncture in conjuction with traditional treatments will often give better results than using either of these modalities alone.

Safety of Acupuncture

When administered by a properly trained professional, acupuncture is one of the safest medical treatments available. It has a long track record of safety and efficacy having been used in China and other parts of Asia for well over 3000 years. Side effects are rare and when occur, are usually minimal. They can include lethargy or exacerbation of symptoms for 24 to 48 hours after a treatment (this is actually a sign that the body is responding and healing, and once it passes, improvement takes place). Also, on rare occasions, there can be persistent irritation or infection at the insertion site. Sterile needles are used, so this minimal risk is the same as any needle stick procedure (injection, blood draw, etc). performed in a medical setting.

Expectations During Treatments

During a treatment, a number of sterile, disposable needles are inserted into specific points on the body. It may be as few as 3 or 4 needles or as many as 20. They are used only once then discarded. The needles are very fine and most patients, even cats, tolerate them very well. At some points the needles are inserted to a shallow depth, just through the skin and other points deeper into the muscle tissue. Once the needles are in most patients relax. Some even fall asleep! The needles remain in for 20 to 40 minutes. During the entire procedure you remain in the room with your pet.
For some conditions, wire leads are clipped to selected needles and electrical stimulation is applied to the acupoints. Depending on the electrical frequency used, release of different neurotransmitters can be induced. For example, low frequencies stimulate endorphin release for pain control, whereas higher frequencies stimulate release of other neurotransmitters helpful for internal medical conditions (such as gastrointestinal motility disorders). The electrical impulse can also help to tone muscles that are weakened from disuse and it provides extra stimulation of the selected acupoints.
Sometimes injections are done at acupuncture points to provide continued stimulation to the selected points. This technique is called aquapuncture. Sterile saline, vitamin B-12, or injectable medications can be used.. It can also deliver medications in a more specific and effective way. (Research studies have shown that medications such as antibiotics and anti-inflammatories are more effective when delivered at an acupuncture point relevant to a particular condition, as compared with injections given at random locations.)

Frequency of treatments

For most conditions, treatments are done once a week for 4 to 8 weeks, and then spaced further and further apart. Some response may be seen after the first treatment, but it can sometimes take several treatments before a significant response is seen. Acupuncture is not treating or masking symptoms, it is actually stimulating the body’s own healing mechanisms. Healing and repair take time. Most commonly, the first effects seen are more on a mental/spiritual/emotional level. For example, clients often report after the first treatment that the pet seems happier (wags tail or purrs more) and/or that the pet is more relaxed and sleeping better at night. Then after a few more treatments, the physical symptoms start to improve. Acute conditions may require just one series of treatments, whereas chronic or degenerative diseases may require ongoing treatments once a month.

How acupuncture works

Chinese theory holds that energy (called chi) flows through the body along specific pathways called meridians. These meridians flow on the surface of the body and in a vast network through the organs and other deep tissues of the body. Many of the meridians follow the paths of what we know to be major nerves and blood vessels. The acupuncture points are located along these pathways where they travel the surface of the body.
Blockages or imbalances in the energy flow result in pain or disease. Inserting needles at the acupuncture points unblocks or rebalances the energy flow so that the body can return to a healthier state. Points on the surface can affect energy flow in that area, or in a deeper area of the body that is connected to that point on the meridian. Basically, it assists the body to heal itself by balancing its own vital energies.

Western science has only begun to uncover scientific explanation of how acupuncture works. It has been demonstrated scientifically that acupuncture is capable of affecting many physiological changes that can assist the body in healing itself. Much of this has been shown to be mediated by the nervous system, either directly or indirectly. Some of these effects include increasing blood flow to an area, stimulating contraction or relaxation of skeletal muscles and internal organs, stimulating release of hormones, neurotransmitters, and stimulating immune system response (Increase circulating white blood cells and interferon, etc), and pain relief. Many acupuncture effects seem to result from a combination of different mechanisms. For instance, the pain relief effects can be explained by direct effect on the nervous system by blocking pain signals at the level of the spinal cord, relieving muscle spasms and tension in the affected area, release of natural anti-inflammatory and pain relieving hormones and neurotransmitters such as cortisol, endorphins, enkephalins, and serotonin. There is also scientific evidence of acupuncture affecting the bio-electrical field around the body. Many of the physiological effects of acupuncture have been studied by western science, but many are still unknown. Most of the time there appears to be more than one physiological mechanism involved in achieving the desired result.