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Acupuncture for Diabetic Peripheral Neuropathy: How It Can Help

Diabetic peripheral neuropathy is a common complication of diabetes that affects the nerves in the hands and feet. It can cause a variety of symptoms, including numbness, tingling, pain, and weakness.

Acupuncture is a traditional Chinese medicine treatment that has been shown to be effective in relieving the symptoms of diabetic peripheral neuropathy. It works by stimulating specific points on the body with needles. This helps to improve blood flow to the nerves and reduce inflammation.

A study published in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism found that acupuncture was effective in reducing pain and improving function in people with diabetic peripheral neuropathy. The study participants received 20 acupuncture treatments over a period of 10 weeks.

Another study, published in the journal Diabetes Care, found that acupuncture was effective in improving nerve conduction velocity in people with diabetic peripheral neuropathy. Nerve conduction velocity is a measure of how quickly electrical signals travel along the nerves.

If you are living with diabetic peripheral neuropathy, acupuncture may be a helpful treatment option for you. Talk to your doctor to see if acupuncture is right for you.

Here are some of the benefits of using acupuncture for diabetic peripheral neuropathy:

  • It can help to reduce pain and improve function.
  • It can help to improve nerve conduction velocity.
  • It can help to reduce inflammation.
  • It is a safe and natural treatment.
  • It has few side effects.

If you are considering acupuncture for diabetic peripheral neuropathy, call today to set up a consultation to see if you are a good candidate for treatment.

Acupuncture for Neuropathy: How Can It Help?

Neuropathy is a condition that affects the nerves, causing pain, numbness, tingling, and other symptoms. It can be caused by a variety of factors, including diabetes, injury, and certain medications.

Acupuncture is a traditional Chinese medicine treatment that has been shown to be effective in relieving the symptoms of neuropathy. It works by stimulating specific points on the body with needles. This helps to improve blood flow and nerve function, which can reduce pain and improve overall well-being.

There are a number of studies that have shown the effectiveness of acupuncture for neuropathy. For example, a study published in the journal Pain found that acupuncture was effective in reducing pain and improving function in people with diabetic neuropathy.

Another study, published in the journal Acupuncture in Medicine, found that acupuncture was effective in reducing pain and improving sleep quality in people with HIV-related neuropathy.

If you are suffering from neuropathy, acupuncture may be a safe and effective treatment option for you. Talk to your doctor about whether acupuncture is right for you.

How Can Acupuncture Help with Neuropathy?

Acupuncture works by stimulating specific points on the body with needles. These points are believed to be linked to the body’s energy system, or meridians. When the needles are inserted, they release chemicals that help to improve blood flow and nerve function. This can help to reduce pain, improve sleep quality, and reduce inflammation.

What Are the Benefits of Acupuncture for Neuropathy?

The benefits of acupuncture for neuropathy include:

  • Reduced pain
  • Improved sleep quality
  • Reduced inflammation
  • Improved nerve function
  • Increased energy levels
  • Improved mood
  • Improved nerve function

How Many Acupuncture Sessions Are Needed for Neuropathy?

The number of acupuncture sessions needed for neuropathy will vary depending on the individual. However, most people see improvement after a short time. Each patient is examined for sensory loss at their initial consultation to determine how many treatments are needed for their success. 

Is Acupuncture Safe for Neuropathy?

Acupuncture is generally safe for people with neuropathy. 

How Can I Find a Qualified Acupuncture Provider for Neuropathy?

Acupuncturists in the state of Maryland attend an accredited graduate school program for 3-5 years before becoming eligible to attain licensure for acupuncture. Not all acupuncturists are trained in how to treat neuropathy, however. Neuropathy is a complex condition that requires extensive additional training, which Dr. Parks has mastered over the last 4 years, with over an 85% success rate in treating neuropathy. 

Acupuncture Research: Neuropathy Solutions are Here!

One exciting piece of compiled research breaks down many times of neuropathy and how acupuncture was used to improve the various types of acupuncture called, “Acupuncture for the Treatment of Peripheral Neuropathy: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.”

Results of 13 clinical trials showed, “most long-term follow-ups favored acupuncture at 4 weeks,56,60 5 weeks,61 7 months, and 13 months,55 ” and “all four RCTs56,60,61,62 used validated CTS-specific scales (Table 2) and reported significant improvement with manual acupuncture56,60,62 and electroacupuncture61 compared with baseline in the Global Symptom Score,56,60 Boston Carpal Tunnel Score,61 Carpal Tunnel Self-assessment Questionnaire,62 and Visual Analogue Scale61 (Table 3). Three of the four RCTs included showed significantly greater effectiveness of acupuncture compared with night splinting,61 sham acupuncture,60 oral vitamin B1 and B6,60 and oral prednisolone.56 ”

Acupuncture-induced changes in nerve conduction parameters

“NCS were performed in included trials on DPN and CTS (Table 4). With respect to motor nerve function, acupuncture produced significant effects on median nerve compound muscle action potential (CMAP) amplitude, median nerve distal motor latency (DML), and motor nerve conduction velocity (NCV) of the median, ulnar, and peroneal nerves. Compared with medication control, acupuncture caused significantly greater improvement in DML and in median, ulnar, and motor NCV.”

Sensory NCS revealed that acupuncture caused an increase in sensory nerve action potential (SNAP) amplitude in the median nerve, lowered median nerve distal sensory latency (DSL), and increased median and peroneal nerve NCV.”

This piece of research can be found in full text at: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5359694/ Dimitrova, A., Murchison, C., & Oken, B. (2017). Acupuncture for the Treatment of Peripheral Neuropathy: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Journal of alternative and complementary medicine (New York, N.Y.), 23(3), 164–179. https://doi.org/10.1089/acm.2016.0155

The Acupuncture profession has been extremely busy the last 10 years with clinical trials, experiments on how effective specific acupuncture protocols are for different conditions. Up until about 10 years ago, many clinical trials on acupuncture were skewed because the “control” in the experiments was “sham acupuncture.”

Sham acupuncture and regular acupuncture had to be “double blinded” in the original clinical trials, and therefore were done with something placed on the skin and a plastic “guide tube” used to tap the acupuncture needle into the skin. Participants in the clinical trials were not sure if they were receiving the sham acupuncture or the regular acupuncture, because the tapping sensation was the same for both. Another way sham acupuncture was performed was to needle places on the body that were not the exact anatomical acupuncture point locations, however the needle placements were often still located on the acupuncture pathway or close enough to an acupuncture point to still stimulate an acupuncture point and create clinical improvements in the participants.

The more impressive clinical trial results are those that compare acupuncture to another health modality, such as pain medication or physical therapy. Acupuncture often is shown in these clinical trials to be significantly more effective in improving patient outcomes and getting better clinical results in treating most conditions.

You can see more acupuncture research (and ALL types of medical research!) for yourself, by exploring research on the government regulated public medical database, www.PubMed.gov

If you look at research, I do suggest reading how the experiment was conducted, what the ‘control’ of the experiment was, and how big the sample size was, and for how long.

At Cloud 9 Acupuncture, we specialize in treating many types of neuropathy, including peripheral neuropathy, bell’s palsy, and diabetic neuropathy, as well as chemotherapy induced peripheral neuropathy. We are one of a handful of clinics in the country that provide this proprietary neuropathy treatments with over a 85% success rate. Call 410-847-4766 to begin with a consultation.

Making Your Golden Years More Golden with Less Pain

Many of our patients have been told by their doctors they are “just getting old” and they will “just have to live with the pain” or take medications that have a lot of side effects, and usually stop working as well after a while. Hopeless and fighting pain on a daily basis, losing sleep because they are awoken by pain nightly, our patients finally find Cloud 9 Acupuncture & Integrative Medicine as their pain relief solution.
Using cutting edge technology as one of only 3 clinics in the DMV region to offer Ozone therapy and ATP Resonance BioTherapy, specialized electroacupuncture programs specific to a patient’s challenging condition like Neuropathy, Fibromyalgia, or Infertility, our clinical success is unparalleled with over an 85% success rate with these conditions. Results begin in a matter of just a few short weeks.
Ozone is also known as “Activated Oxygen” or O3. Instead of using well-known oxygen aka O2, ozone fully oxygenates any cell or tissue it comes in contact with. Ozone also kills viruses, bacteria, mold, fungus it comes in contact with. Clinically, we use ozone to fully oxygenate cells in conditions that are caused by perceived natural physical decline associated with aging, like Arthritis or Neuropathy. We also see many benefits to using ozone with autoimmune conditions, like Fibromyalgia, Epstein Barr Virus, and Long Haul Covid.
Now there is hope. at Cloud 9 Acupuncture. Begin with a Consultation to learn more. Call 410-847-4766.

Neuropathy… Did You Know?

Neuropathy plagues approximately 20 million people in the United States. This particular type of nerve damage can have a multitude of medical causes.

  1. Diabetes
  2. Chemotherapy (or Radiation) Induced Peripheral Neuropathy also known as CIPN
  3. Nerve damage, especially originating from spinal compression, bulging disc, or pinched nerve.
  4. Viral Induced (including COVID-19)
  5. Unknown

Symptoms usually include tingling, numbness that can be quite painful, feeling of walking on “pins and needles,” unable to properly feel one’s feet or hands. After the pain of numbness and sharp, hot pain fades the feet or hands become truly numb, which is a progressive degeneration of the condition. This is a sign that the peripheral nerves have actually died and started to recede, which presents as true numbness creeping upwards, for example from the feet up the legs to even the groin. Or from the hands towards the shoulder. The exact level of severity of the Neuropathy condition is assessed by a neurological exam called the Toronto Exam.

Unfortunately, there is not much doctors can offer to treat neuropathy… Until now.

Now there is Hope.

At Cloud 9 Acupuncture, we have over a 85% success rate in significantly improving neuropathy cases. Without meds, without side effects, we use acupuncture combined with cutting edge technology to create a reversal of neuropathy. To get started, call for a consultation to find out if you are a candidate for our Neuropathy Program.

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