Acupuncture Vs. Prolotherapy
Acupuncture and prolotherapy are two very different therapies. What they have in common is that they are both used to treat chronic pain.
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What Is Acupuncture?
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Acupuncture is part of traditional Chinese medicine. Needles are inserted at points along meridians (energy lines) in the body for the purpose of correcting energy flow, which can lead the body to heal itself.
How Is Acupuncture Used?
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According to the American Academy of Medical Acupuncture, acupuncture promotes health and well-being, prevents illness and treats various medical conditions.
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What Is Prolotherapy?
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Prolotherapy, also known as nonsurgical ligament reconstruction, treats damage to soft tissue using injections of dextrose (sugar water solution). The doctor injects the solution into the ligament or tendon where it attaches to the bone; the solution causes inflammation that increases the flow of blood and nutrients to the area, which stimulates the tissue to repair itself.
How Is Prolotherapy Used?
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According to prolotherapy.com, prolotherapy is useful for many types of musculoskeletal pain, including arthritis, back or neck pain, fibromyalgia, sports injuries, whiplash, carpal tunnel syndrome, chronic tendonitis, partially torn tendons or ligaments, disc problems and sciatica.
Considerations
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If you have chronic pain, only you and your health care provider can decide whether prolotherapy or acupuncture is most likely to help your condition.
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References
- Photo Credit Image by Flickr.com, courtesy of Juhan Sonin
