In hospitals and medical practices, back pain from neck tension to herniated discs is treated with anti-inflammatory injections, painkillers, massages, bed rest, heat or cold treatment and physiotherapy. Surgery is only performed if there is a suspicion of nerve failure. That is, if the patient can no longer move a leg, if the bladder or bowel no longer function properly or if other failures of the nervous system become apparent.
Acupuncture (acupuncture for back pain) combines near points of the bladder meridian, which is located next to the spine, with points of the handlebar vessel. Far points are selected along the bladder or gallbladder meridian. The needles remain in place for about 20 to 30 minutes.
Treatment is initially twice a week for two weeks, then once a week for about eight weeks. The patient often feels relief from pain after the first three sessions. Only about ten percent of patients do not respond to acupuncture at all.
For 70 percent of chronic complaints, needling brings good success. For acute problems the result is even better. In such cases, the result is 80 percent.
Accompanying ear acupuncture, irradiation of acupuncture points with laser light, i.e. laser acupuncture, or the electrical stimulation of acupuncture needles, can also support the healing success. In acute forms such as lumbago after a sudden unfortunate movement, acupuncture usually helps after just one or two sessions. Here, no massage or heat treatment should be performed.
With chronic back pain, on the other hand, 10-20 treatment sessions are often necessary to achieve significant long-term pain relief. Accompanying moxibustion is often very effective. Pain after disc surgery often requires more than 20 treatment sessions.
Chronic back pain is one of the most important diseases, along with migraine, for which acupuncture can lead to permanent pain relief. As the Gerac study of the statutory health insurance companies (the largest study on the effect of acupuncture to date) recently proved, Chinese needle therapy is excellent for treating back pain. In combination with conventional medical measures such as painkillers, physiotherapy, massages or even acupuncture alone, it achieves excellent results for back pain of various causes.
In the case of back pain, the costs are even covered by the health insurance. Scientists examined over 1,100 patients who were divided into three groups. One group was treated conventionally, they were prescribed painkillers, physiotherapy and back strengthening training.
The second group received acupuncture, the third sham acupuncture. The result after six months: About 50% of those who had been treated with acupuncture had experienced a marked improvement, compared to 27% from the group that had been treated conventionally and 44% from those who had received sham acupuncture. You should therefore consider acupuncture treatment for back pain.
To avoid getting into the situation of looking for a suitable therapy in the first place, everyone should follow 5 simple rules for a healthy back:
- Avoid overweight – every kilo puts a strain on the spine! – Do sports – trained abdominal and back muscles stabilize the back. – Get exercise – monotonous activities are poison for the back.
If you sit a lot, you should get up more often, stretch and stretch. – Keep mental strain as low as possible – stress and mental tension affect the backbone through posture. – Wear shoes with thick rubber soles or air cushions – they cushion each step better and shake the spine less.
