Laser acupuncture (synonym: soft laser treatment) is a traditional Chinese medicine procedure for performing painless acupuncture without the use of needles. Classical acupuncture, which is part of traditional Chinese medicine, has a very long history. The western name acupuncture is composed of the words acus (lat. = tip, needle) and pungere (lat. = to prick). The procedure is defined as the insertion of needles at specific acupuncture points located along meridians (energy pathways). In traditional Chinese medicine, there is no separate term for acupuncture. The term zhen jiu is commonly used. This means needle and moxibustion (targeted application of heat). There are three forms of acupuncture:
- Insertion of needles – acupuncture.
- Treatment with heat – moxibustion
- Massage – acupressure
Laser acupuncture, developed as a painless alternative to conventional acupuncture by doctors Nogier and Bahr, is eligible as a therapeutic or diagnostic application. Especially in ear acupuncture, the weaker acupuncture laser compared to surgical lasers is used. Although laser acupuncture was developed as a procedure specifically for young children, it is now becoming increasingly popular in adult medicine as well. Conventional and laser acupuncture are often used in combination.
Indications (areas of application)
- Cephalgia (headache) and migraine – these symptoms, which are particularly common in school-age children, can be relieved by brief periosteal laser stimulation (the area of action of the laser is the periosteum) of the bones of the skull. Furthermore, migraine prophylaxis with laser acupuncture is also possible.
- Atopic eczema (neurodermatitis) – the wound healing effect and the reduction of pruritus (itching) indicate the effectiveness of the procedure in alleviating the symptoms of a present atopic eczema.
- Bronchial asthma – the use of the laser procedure reduces the risk of pneumothorax (collapse of a lung), as the use of needles can be eliminated.
- Wound treatment – wound closure can be faster due to the use of laser light.
- Arthralgia (joint pain) – In addition to the antiphlogic (anti-inflammatory) effect, the treatment should help reduce the joke sensation by transmitting signals in the acupuncture meridians. The irradiation points are primarily the pressure-dolent (pressure-painful) areas.
- Primary enuresis – treatment of bedwetting children should be done at the age of five years at the earliest. If laser irradiation is performed once or twice a week, treatment results are better.
The procedure
The principle of laser acupuncture is the stimulation of specific areas in the so-called acupuncture meridians, which leads to the change of cell structure. These changes are accompanied by the death of cells at the site of laser action. Today it is assumed by the proponents of traditional Chinese medicine that the triggered cell death causes a signal, which is passed on via the meridians and thus leads to healing or alleviation of the symptom. Another explanation for the symptom-relieving effect of laser acupuncture is the blood circulation-stimulating and antiphlogistic (anti-inflammatory) effect of the laser. Moreover, the promotion of wound healing is often cited as an additional therapeutic value. The application of the laser in acupuncture is based on its property that a precise and tissue-conserving therapy can be carried out. Laser beams as such are light elements with the same wavelength. Representatives of traditional Chinese medicine consider the laser beam as an optimal method of ordering unbalanced body states. The treatment with the laser transfers an energetic state to certain acupuncture points of the body. The depth of penetration of the laser beams causes a surge of excitation, with which a higher energy level can be reached. This state of the irradiated area is supposed to cause an activity through which other tissues are positively influenced in the sense of acupuncture. The transmission of the signals coming from the irradiated areas takes place in the meridians and leads to a restoration of balance in the body.About the procedure of laser acupuncture:
- Although the procedure is a very low-risk method of acupuncture, do not forget to wear protective glasses to avoid possible retinal damage.
- Depending on the disease symptoms present, the irradiation points are selected.
- The duration of treatment varies. A therapeutic session lasts an average of 20 to 40 minutes.
Benefits
The use of laser acupuncture opens up the medical community to a broader treatment of infants and young children with acupuncture procedures. Furthermore, it allows adult patients who do not desire needle insertion to benefit from acupuncture. The applications of the procedure in medicine are wide-ranging and often promise symptom relief even for diseases that are difficult to treat.
