Acupuncture Services of Central NY

After reading “Battlefield Acupuncture for the Clinical Practitioner” by Dr. John Amaro, I just had to learn more about this technique. A little research led me to this great article by Dr. Richard Niemtzow himself. Dr. Niemtzow developed this new auricular therapy protocol in 2001. His article gives very specific step by step instructions, diagrams and photos for needle placement to achieve almost immediate pain relief.

I decided to try the technique on several of my patients who had been suffering from chronic pain. I have one patient in particular that I have been seeing for several months for severe back pain. Having been in an auto accident ten years previously, and having fractured several vertebrae, he had been making progress with some of my other acupuncture protocols for back pain. When I first met him his pain level was 8 on a scale of 10 most of the time. With weekly treatments, we were able to give him several days of complete pain relief after the treatment and when the pain returned, it rarely exceeded a 5 on a scale of 10. He had tried other therapies over the years with little relief and was very happy with this improvement. I, on the other hand, am always looking for new ways to relieve pain.

With Dr. Niemtzow's instructions in front of me, I inserted an ASP gold needle into the cingulate gyrus point on his left ear and told him to walk up and down the hallway for a few minutes. When he returned, I asked if he noticed a change in his pain level. With disappointment showing on his face, he said “no, not really”. As the instructions stated, I put a needle in the same point on the other ear. He stood to start down the hallway again and turned to me with a big smile on his face. “That's the ear! This is amazing!” he said. When he returned from his hallway stroll, his pain had decreased 60%. I inserted the other four points in that dominant ear and let him rest on the table for a half hour.

When he left the office, he was pain free, as he usually was after an acupuncture treatment. The difference with the battlefield acupuncture approach was that the small gold needles were left in place for several days at home and his pain level remained low for much longer than a traditional treatment.

I am excited about this new tool to help with pain management for my patients. It is extremely easy to perform. The same five points are used for any pain in the body, which differs from the usual auricular points chosen. Dr. Niemtzow's article shows statistics for treating sciatic pain, fibromyalgia, shoulder pain, low back pain, TMJ, carpal tunnel, hip and elbow pain.

Additionally, Dr. Niemtzow has found that quick bilateral insertion into points omega 2, shenmen and point zero with regular acupuncture needles, without walking the patient, will resolve most migraine headaches. Practitioners, give it a try!

About the Author:
Joyce Marley is a licensed acupuncturist that provides acupuncture therapy in New Hartford, NY. She writes Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) health articles about acupuncture and Oriental medicine.

Posted by Joyce Marley at 02:17 PM | Battlefield Acupuncture: A New Pain Therapy

Recently, I have received several requests for information on battlefield acupuncture, a term first used in 2001 by my friend and colleague Col. Richard Niemtzow, MD, PhD, who serves as a consultant for complementary and alternative medicine to the Surgeon General of the Air Force. I have served with him on the board of Directors of the Auriculotherapy Certification Institute.

It was recently announced that the U.S. Air Force will begin training physicians being deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan in a specific type of treatment. The treatment uses small needles in the skin of the ear to block pain in as few as five minutes and can last for several days or longer. The procedure was initially introduced in 2008 at Landstuhl Regional Medical Center (LRMC), where it was applied to wounded service members and local patients for pain relief, with significant results. The hospital, located near Ramstein Air Base in Germany, is the largest and most modern U.S. military medical facility outside the United States.

One of the pain specialists at LRMC personally experienced a 25 percent increased range of motion and a 50 percent reduction in pain for chronic shoulder and upper back pain he had endured for several years. As a result of his outstanding success, this pain specialist recruited his most challenging patients, for whom traditional pain treatment had offered limited relief. Within minutes of the needles being inserted, many said their pain was reduced by up to 75 percent. A 25 percent reduction would be considered a success with traditional pain medications.

Despite its name, battlefield acupuncture is not purposely designed to replace standard medical care for war-related injuries, but rather to assist in pain relief and in many cases eliminate the need for pain medication for acute and chronic pain. This procedure is extremely easy to learn and may be taught to anyone in an extremely short time. It allows a provider to confidently complete a treatment and expect a good result within minutes. There are virtually no complications and patients are subjected to little or no discomfort.

It has been reported that only approximately 15 percent of patients do not respond to this acupuncture procedure, but of those who do, their pain reduction often averages about 75 percent. The frequency of application and the duration of relief vary with each patient, but treatment can progress from about two times a week to as little as once a month or longer. In some cases, further acupuncture treatment may not be required.

There are five specific ear points that are classically used; however, many practitioners only use two. The five points are: Wonderful Point (also known as Point Zero), Shen Men, Omega 2, Thalamus and the Cingulate Gyrus. The Cingulate Gyrus point and the Thalamus are the two points all practitioners use.

As in so many acupuncture procedures, practitioners may place the points in different locations. The Cingulate Gyrus has also been called the Subcortex by Terry Oleson, PhD (international authority on auriculotherapy). Beate Strittmatter, MD, a German authority, places it slightly differently. Personally, I use both locations just to make sure I cover all of my bases.

The Omega 2 point is on the internal of the helix. Due to the thinness of the auricle at this point, any stimulation from the exterior will contact the Omega 2 point. Some may wish to approach this point from the interior, but I personally go from the exterior.

The Thalamus point is directly opposite on the internal side of the exterior points known as the Temple or Sun. Most battlefield acupuncture practitioners approach the Thalamus from the internal position. However, I have always felt this point could be accessed just as easily by stimulation of the Temple (Sun) points from the exterior, and have used it that way for years. (Click here to link to the original article with a diagram of the points Dr. Amaro uses.)

The official procedure uses gold semi-permanent needles, which are placed directly into the point and left to fall out on their own in a day or two. I have seen marvelous results with low-level laser directly to the points, as well as electronic stimulation. Conventional acupuncture needles may be stimulated for 10 minutes. Then use an acu-patch, which is a small stimulation sphere attached by flesh-colored adhesive. This can be left in place for several days or longer.

This procedure is too valuable to overlook in your general practice. It is easy, quick and effective. Do not limit yourself to just acute or chronic pain with this combination of points. It is also extremely effective in anxiety, neurosis, neurasthenia and any psychological or stress-related issues.

About the Author:
John Amaro, L.Ac, D.C. is a renowned author and teacher in the field of medical acupuncture. He is the founder of the International Academy of Medical Acupuncture. He has graciously given me permission to reprint his articles.

Posted by Joyce Marley at 08:47 PM | Battlefield Acupuncture for the Clinical Practitioner By John Amaro, L.Ac, DC

After a very lengthy phone call that made me very angry, I started having a
pain in my jaw near my ear. I told a co-worker who advised me not to open
my jaw wide because it might lock in that position. She informed me that
it was TMJ. The pain was not severe at first, but by the next morning while
I was trying to eat breakfast, the pain was just too much.

I called my chiropractor who got me right in for an adjustment. It felt a little better
for a very short amount of time and then the full pain came back.

I called Joyce to see if she could get me in that same day and thankfully she had a
cancellation. I got on the table and she inserted one needle, then two
more, and then she asked how is the pain. I was able to close my mouth in a
clenched position with no pain!! It was truly amazing. That was months ago and I am still pain and
symptom free. It's hard not to be in awe of the power of acupuncture with results like that!

Thank you so much Joyce!

Diana
Frankfort, NY

Posted by Joyce Marley at 07:46 AM | Acupuncture for TMJ - A Testimonial

One of the most common ailments that brings a new patient to my office is sciatic pain. Master Tung acupuncture points for sciatic pain give me amazing results. And I give my thanks to Dr. Richard Tan for first introducing them to me. The primary points used for sciatic regardless of the meridian(s) effected on the leg are Linggu and Dabai. These two points are located on the Large Intestine channel.

The points are needled on the hand opposite to the sciatic pain. Linggu is needled first. It is located proximal to LI4 anterior to the border of the junction between the first and second metacarpal bones. Dabai is located at LI3, but needled closer to the bone.

Being located on the yangming meridian, rich in qi and blood, these points have a very powerful effect to regulate qi and blood. These two points are used in Master Tung's acupuncture system for many conditions, but they are almost indispensable in my practice to treat opposite lumbar pain and sciatica.

Once these points are inserted, the patient tells me which meridians on the leg are affected. If the pain shoots down the back of the leg, effecting the Bladder, or taiyang channel, I often add points SI3 and SI4 on the hand with Linggu and Dabai and point BL65 on the affected leg as a guiding point to create a therapeutic energetic loop. If the pain shoots down the side of the leg, affecting the Gallbladder, or shaoyang meridian, I add SJ5 and SJ6 on the hand with Linggu and Dabai and point GB41 as a guide on the affected leg. If the pain travels to the groin and down the medial aspect of the leg, LV3 can be used as a guide.

While the needles are in place, I have the patient move the affected leg for a few minutes. Master Tung often used distal points on the healthy side of the body with a guiding point on the diseased side of the body. Moving the affected part of the body, guides the qi to the diseased area. Pain relief is almost instantaneous. I love this approach. There is no need to insert a needle into the painful part of the body. There is no need for the patient to disrobe. And the results are amazing.

The only time I do NOT use this approach is during pregnancy. Linggu, being so close to LI4, is contraindiciated during pregnancy.

If you are an acupuncturist looking for a new approach to treating sciatic pain, try this protocol and let me know your results! You'll definitely want to learn more about Master Tung's acupuncture points.

About the Author: Joyce Marley is a licensed acupuncturist that provides acupuncture therapy in New Hartford, NY. She writes Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) health articles about acupuncture and Oriental medicine.

Posted by Joyce Marley at 10:58 AM | Master Tung Acupuncture Points for Sciatic Pain

When I was a first year student in my TCM training, in my enthusiasm and eagerness to apply what I was learning to my future patients, I would approach my professors and say, for example, “can Chinese medicine treat fibromyalgia?” Or, “can Chinese medicine treat multiple sclerosis?” Every time, I would get the same response - “what are the signs and symptoms?”

We are talking about a system of medicine that has been around for thousands of years. There really is no frame of reference in Chinese medicine to the Western disease labels that have evolved in modern times. Chinese medicine will always look at everything going on in the body and determine an imbalance of yin and yang, Qi and Blood. In fact, there is a very famous saying in Chinese medicine - “one disease, many treatments...many diseases, one treatment.”

What I love about “The Treatment of Modern Western Medical Diseases with Chinese Medicine”, co-authored by Bob Flaws and Philippe Sionneau, is the detailed analysis of 72 different Western medicine labels and all the patterns of imbalance that are usually associated with them in Chinese medicine. For each of the diseases there is information on the Western etiology, treatment and prognosis. And then a detailed analysis of the disease mechanisms from a Chinese medicine aspect. Acupuncture and herbal treatments are suggested based on pattern discrimination. Summary remarks address the prognosis from a Chinese medicine point of view.

Some of the conditions, like acne, migraines, carpal tunnel, fibromyalgia and arthritis are conditions that are seen in the clinic all the time. So, they were discussed in the academic environment and were seen in the student clinic. It is still nice to have one reference to go to to review treatment options. Some of the more serious diseases, like ALS, multiple sclerosis and systemic lupus erythmatosus (SLE) I probably would never have thought of treating without the information in this book. Chinese medical treatment for these conditions focuses on slowing the progression of the disease and minimizing suffering and disability. We really can improve the quality of life for these patients. And isn't that what it is all about?

Here is a complete list of the Table of Contents of conditions that could benefit from Chinese medicine:
acne, allergic rhinitis, alzheimer's, ALS, aplastic anemia, behcet's syndrome, benign prostatic hypertrophy, bronchial asthma, carpal tunnel, celiac disease, CVA, cervical spondylosis, cholecyctitis, chronic active hepatitis, chronic fatigue syndrome, chronic glomerulonephritis, chronic pancreatitis, chronic prostatitis, chronic renal failure, chronic sinisitus, coronary artery disease, crohn's disease, cushing's syndrome, diabetes, diverticulitis, fibromyalgia, gout, hashimoto's thyroiditis, hemorrhoids, herpes genitalia, herpes zoster, hyperlipoproteinemia, hypertension, hypoglycemia, hypotension, idiopathic thrombocytopenic purpura, interstitial cystitis, IBS, lateral epicondylitis, lumbar disk herniation, lyme disease, macular degeneration, meniere's disease, migraines, MS, myasthenia gravis, oral leukoplakia, osteoarthritis, osteoporosis, parkinson's disease, peptic ulcers, periarthritis of the shoulder, peridontal disease, peripheral neuropathy, piriformis syndrome, pneumonia, polymyositis, postconcussion syndrome, pulmonary tuberculosis, raynaud's disease, reflux, rheumatoid arthritis, scleroderma, sjogren's syndrome, stress incontinence, subarachnoid hemorrhage, systemic lupus erythmatosus, TMJ, trigeminal neuralgia, ulcerative colitis, urolithiasis.

This is a great reference book for the Chinese medicine practitioner.

About the Author: Joyce Marley is a licensed acupuncturist that provides acupuncture therapy in New Hartford, NY. She writes Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) health articles about acupuncture and Oriental medicine.

Posted by Joyce Marley at 05:23 AM | What Does Acupuncture and Chinese Medicine Treat?

I read the following article by Dr. Amaro quite a while ago, but as a practitioner his message has stuck with me. Often, my new patients will start off our initial consultation with the words, "you are my last hope", because they have been everywhere and tried everything prior to giving acupuncture a chance. The beauty of Chinese medicine is that it looks at everything going on in the body - both physical and emotional - to arrive at a treatment plan. Addressing constipation to treat back pain can be key for many patients when nothing else has worked. Dr. Amaro's complete acupuncture point prescription for constipation referred to later in the article is: Ren 12, 5 and 4, SP16, ST25, 38, 40, GB34, LI2, 4, and BL25 and 42.

“The frog in the well---knows not of the great ocean”!
November 17, 2003
By: John A. Amaro D.C., FIAMA, Dipl.Ac.(IAMA)(NCCAOM), L.Ac.

In the early 70’s when acupuncture was first being introduced to the United States through numerous media reports, the medical profession was less than accepting of this seemingly strange healing art. The first time I had ever heard the statement “The frog in the well knows not of the great ocean” was an angered Chinese response to the American scientific and medical communities allegations of “fraud, quackery and hypnosis regarding acupuncture. Since that time I have used this saying often whenever I respond to someone exhibiting what may be described as “tunnel vision” or the unwillingness to investigate a matter further than what is on the surface.

Since I am personally involved with both acupuncture and chiropractic which unfortunately are two professions which are often very misunderstood by both the public and the medical profession, I have uttered my sentiments about the frog many many times.

This article however has nothing to do with the politics of the profession, public or scientific misunderstanding or even tunnel vision for that matter, but it does have to do with thinking outside of the box. Something I refer to as “lateral thinking”.

How often are we as practitioners approached by a new patient seeking our help who reports to having been everywhere and done everything for their condition but to no avail? These patients tell horrendous stories of woe concerning pain, suffering, financial loss and considerable time, energy and emotional drain in their attempt to find relief from their conditions. Since both chiropractic and acupuncture are generally the last stop on the patient’s list of practitioners to see for their health condition, we often see the patient when they are at the extreme of frustration and loss of patience. Far too often a patient has already made up their mind before coming to our office that they’ll give this approach a try but just a very short one. In both acupuncture and chiropractic it behooves the practitioner to show a dramatic clinical response very early in treatment.

When seeing a patient who reports an extensive medical history and a multitude of doctors seen for their condition, it is imperative to engage our brains and creativity in lateral thinking. That is, to avoid tunnel vision. Remember, the frog in the well, knows not of the great ocean”.

A 24-year-old married pharmacy student sought care in my office for severe debilitating lumbar back pain. She reported having back pain for years but for the last three full years, the pain was virtually uncontrollable.

This patient stated she had seen three different orthopedics, a neurosurgeon, physical therapy and medical physicians specializing in pain. Her x-ray report stated no radiographic evidence of abnormality in the lumbar spine. Her MRI was likewise unremarkable.

Over the last three years, this patient had received three epidurals with no response. She further received three spinal nerve blocks which she admitted to very minimal response but lasted only a few days.

After my initial consultation with the patient, I asked if she could bring in her most recent x-rays for my review before we continued. When she returned with the films I held the x-ray overhead illuminating it through the sun coming into the treatment room window. It was then I inquired about what appeared to be apparent constipation as her colon revealed the mottled appearance seen in that condition. The size and shape of the colon was also of considerable question. She stated she has a history of constipation from the time she was eight years old. She reported having used mineral oil and enemas the vast majority of her life. A normal bowel movement is totally unheard of.

While in undergraduate college she complained of considerable abdominal pain and was diagnosed as “irritable bowel syndrome”. None of this information had ever been discussed prior to my comment about her being constipated as shown by the x-rays.

She was treated with my favorite acupuncture approach to constipation following one meridian balancing treatment as shown by the “Electro Meridian Imaging” evaluation.

The patient returned to the office the following week literally glowing stating she has had normal bowel movements multiple times through out the last four days and her back pain is completely gone. Her back pain has yet to return after almost two full months.

Perhaps one of my most striking cases of lateral thinking concerned a young man 32 years old who was escorted into the office by both his mother and wife. He required assistance to walk and needed constant attention in his everyday movements. The most obvious physical clue he was extremely ill other than his lack of ambulation was the fact his coloring was literally khaki green. He presented as an advanced case of cancer and AIDS.

He had just moved to Arizona from Georgia with his wife and child. The reason for his move as obviously ill as he was was that he would be dead according to his physicians within the next 3-4 months. He had moved to Arizona so his wife and little girl could be close to his mother when he passed.

He stated he had been diagnosed as “Whipple’s Syndrome” which is a malabsorption disease affecting the immune system of the body and often affects the heart, lung and brain. Symptoms include weight loss, fatigue, abdominal pain, loss of appetite and diarrhea. It is considered a rare disease and often fatal. Treatment consists medically of extensive antibiotic therapy and in his case, was taking millions of units of penicillin a day in an attempt to prolong his life. Whipple’s disease is caused by a bacteria which affects the villi of the small intestine which negatively affects nutrients from being absorbed into the body. In those cases that recover, recovery may take up to two years and full relapses are common making this disease one to monitor for years in survivors.

His reason for seeking my assistance in the office was primarily his mothers thought that possibly we could help ease his horrendous abdominal pain in the last days of his life. His “Electro Meridian Imaging” examination showed major pathologic splits in 10 of the 12 meridians with the other two being literally off of the charts. His condition was grave. In discussing more about Whipple’s Syndrome with him because frankly I had never come across it before, I palpated his abdomen and found it to be of the same general feel as the top of my desk. When I inquired about his abdominal pain and in his bowel habits his exact words were “I squeeze out a couple of rabbit turds every two or three weeks” I discovered this had been going on for over three years and perhaps longer than four years.

With this knowledge I treated him with as I have mentioned earlier in this article with my favorite acupuncture approach for constipation. Two days later he returned for a follow up treatment. At which time he asked “What did you do to me on that last visit” When I asked, “why do you ask” he responded with “because I had a major evacuation”. The definition of a major evacuation was that he was unable to flush the toilet at one time. He stated he was forced to remove some of the fecal material from the bowl into a bucket and flush it in increments.

In essence this gentlemen did not have what is known as Whipple’s Syndrome, he was merely severely constipated. The millions of units of penicillin he had been treated with was totally inappropriate. The rest of the story is that one month later he began working for a landscape company. He settled down with his family in Arizona and enjoyed hiking and taking his daughter to soccer practice. Incidentally, that was 16 years ago. He has been in perfect health for all of that time. He visits the office for routine maintenance treatment four times a year whenever the seasons change.

His physicians had never considered something as simple or as common as constipation. In this case, the frog in the well knew not of the great ocean.

Even though the illustration at the end of this article is specific to what I have referred to as my favorite acupuncture approach for constipation, sometimes just using a portion of this entire approach has incredible effects. Two of the most significant points for constipation are simply the combination of GB34 and ST40. This was taught to me 30 years ago in Asia. It has always been one of my most landmark approaches to constipation.

Years ago when I practiced in Kansas City, I attended a farmer from a neighboring town who walked with a considerable limp due to extreme osteoarthritis of the knee. As part of my approach to the treatment of his knee I used amongst other points GB34 and ST40. On his next visit this gentlemen also said “what did you do to me on that last visit”? When I inquired “Why”? He stated he was feeling considerable improvement in his knee and decided to take a walk out to the mailbox which before he would never had considered such a walk as it was over a half mile from the house. He stated that during the walk he experienced pain in his rectal area that became quite uncomfortable. It was then he realized he had just defecated in his pants. He went on to tell me that he had not experienced what most would consider a normal urge to evacuate in his memory. He had not moved his bowels without the use of an enema in over 25 years. The discomfort he had felt in his rectum was nothing more than a normal urge to evacuate. He did not recognize that urge as it had been years since he had experienced that sensation.

The gentlemen went on to have relatively good response with his knee however, he remained a general patient of mine until the day I moved to Arizona 10 years later, he never complained of constipation again. His bowels returned to a normal status. He told hundreds of people how he messed his pants. He was quite proud of it.

Always remember the importance of “lateral thinking” and realize everything is often times not the way it seems. “The frog in the well----knows not of the great ocean”!

About the Author:
John Amaro, L.Ac, D.C. is a renowned author and teacher in the field of medical acupuncture. He is the founder of the International Academy of Medical Acupuncture. He has graciously given me permission to reprint his articles.

Posted by Joyce Marley at 04:18 AM | Acupuncture for Back Pain with Constipation

Many of China’s remarkable herbal products have been exported to the United States for years; Gan Mao Ling, Yunnan Pai Yao, Huang Lian Su, Ching Wan Hong and so on. So, it is refreshing to find a premier Chinese herbal product that has never been exported to the United States finally find its way here. It arrived here through the stubborn persistence of an American practitioner awestruck by the usefulness and effectiveness of the product.

The product is imported and packaged as Yin-Care by ArborUSA. In China it is known as Jie Er Yin Xi Ye, literally “Clean Your Yin Wash-Liquid”. It is popular in China on a level rivaling America’s successful over-the-counter products. Millions of bottles are sold yearly, mostly for vaginitis and as a topical anti-fungal.

The Medical Research.
Yin-Care, under its Chinese name, has been the subject of over 100 medical or hospital studies, including the following. In a study on acne performed by the Department of Dermatology at the Dalian Medical College, the effectiveness rate using Yin-Care topically was 82.7%, compared with a control group using topical sulfur, at 19%.

A study was performed on trichomonas vaginalis, the organism responsible for the most common type of vaginitis, at the 1st Affiliated Hospital of the Fujian Medical College, in 1991. The microbe was incubated with a 10% solution for ten minutes, in which all strains died.

At Kunming Medical University, in a study for chronic urinary tract infections due to chlamydia infection, patients in the treatment group used a 10% solution of Yin-Care as a wash once every evening for 14 days in succession. Patients in the control group were treated with tetracycline. The Yin-Care group showed a 97% cure rate, while the tetracycline group showed a 67% cure rate.

The Sichuan Provincial People’s Hospital, in a year-long study during 1991- 1992, examined 687 patients with thirteen various types of skin disorders. All patients were treated with topical dressings of 3% Yin-Care solution, changed four times daily. Results included the following effectiveness rates: Eczema 74.7%, pediatric eczema 67.9%, allergic dermatitis 76.2%, herpes zoster 51.5%, impetigo 88.2%, tinea infection 62.2%.

The Burn Department at the Daqing hospital did a study on 310 burn patients treated with Yin-Care, with a control group using similar burns on opposite parts of the body. A 5% to 34% solution of Yin-Care was applied directly to the burns, then wrapped with 12 to 16 layers of dry gauze. Yin-Care and dry gauze were reapplied every two days. The control group area used gauze soaked with either an oil extraction of Radix Lithospermum (Zi Cao) or with sulfadiazine argentum. The total rate of infection of the Yin-Care group was 10%, compared with a 44%
rate of infection in the control group.

Finally, in a study done by the Institute of Dermatology of the Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences in 1991, in-vitro antimicrobial actions of Yin-Care were evaluated. Eight strains of bacteria and 18 strains of fungi were subjected to Yin-Care in various dilutions. The study aimed to determine the lowest concentration of Yin-Care to arrest the growth of each respective microbe. Nearly all of these bacterial and fungal cultures were neutralized by concentrations of Yin-Care ranging from 1.6% to 6.25%.

All of these studies are discussed in detail in the research publication Yin-Care Symposium on Dermatology, Obstetrics and Gynecology. Chengdu, China, 1992. Abstracts are available as a pdf file from www.arborusa.com .

Origins and Manufacture.
The Yin-Care formula is said to originate in an old Daoist formula from the area around Chengdu. It was used as a bath four times per year to prepare for seasonal changes while avoiding pathogenic factors. (Because Chengdu is hot and humid, topical fungal infections and other skin conditions may have been prevalent.) A spiritual devotee, Xue Yongxin, was authorized by his Daoist teacher, Zheng Guoli to make the formula available to the people of Chengdu. Mr. Xue started manufacturing in 1982. By 1991, hospital studies began to confirm its efficacy as a topical application, and the government approved the product for hospital distribution. By last year, 80-100 million bottles a year were being sold around China.

The modern manufacture of Yin-Care is state of the art. Fourteen herbs are used, each tested with high density gas chromatography to ascertain their authenticity. The herbs are chopped and soaked in huge vats, then are heated for two hours to distill out essential oils. These oils are captured, bound in an emulsifier, and added in after the other herbs are cooked, condensed and filtered. Finally, a special proprietary hypoallergenic fragrance is added. The use of the essential oils is important, and the medicinal effects of the herbs could not be obtained by water extraction alone.

The Formula.
Yin-Care contains the following herbs: Fructus Cnidium Monnieri (She Chuang Zi), Herba Mentha (Bo He), Flos Lonicera (Jin Yin Hua), Fructus Gardenia (Zhi Zi), Cortex Phellodendron (Huang Bai), Radix Scutellaria Baicalensis (Huang Qin), Radix Sophora Flavescens (Ku Shen), Fructus Kochia (Di Fu Zi), Herba Artemisiae Yinchenhao (Yin Chen Hao), Radix Angelica Pubescens (Du Huo), Rhizoma Atractylodes (Cang Zhu), Rhizoma Acorus Gramineus (Shi Chang Pu), Folium Artemisia Argyi (Ai Ye), Cortex Pseudolarix (Tu Jing Pi). These herbs serve a variety of functions. Cnidium She Chuang Zi, the lead herb, is known for its antifungal effects. Jin Yin Hua, Zhi Zi, Huang Bai, Ku Shen, and Yin Chen Hao all possess strong antimicrobial actions. The other herbs move damp and dispel wind. Kochia Di Fu Zi is well known for its ability to stop itching. Pseudolarix Tu Jing Pi, an unusual herb, is also used to kill parasitic microbes.

Daniel Hudson’s Story.
Daniel Hudson is a most unusual fellow. A trained practitioner of acupuncture and herbal medicine, he left a busy practice in Denver to visit China. While visiting a friend in Chengdu, he came across the remarkable popularity of
Jie Er Yin Xi Ye, and was surprised that he had never seen it in the USA. Allowed to visit the factory, he made friends with the manufacturing staff, and went on to spend 6 weeks at the factory, learning all about its specialized
manufacturing process. Determined to import the product, he returned home and spent a small fortune seeking approval at various state and federal levels, including the FDA. In China, he had randomly selected three products from a pharmacy, a clinic and a hospital, and brought them for lab analysis at the USCSan Diego’s School of Pharmacy. They confirmed that all three bottles were identical, and without drugs or pharmaceuticals of any kind. He won FDA approval for importation, as well as making sure that it passed California Proposition 65. Daniel started a company ArborUSA to import the product, and continues to have USC analyze his imports. He has been setting up distribution in the United States with various distributors, and is opening markets in Canada, Europe and the Middle East.

A Case Example.
I have tried out the product on several patients. One was a 56-year old male with a very stubborn case of tinea cruris. In his case, we had a fungal rash that had spread from his groin to his knee along his inner thigh, and on both buttocks. The rash was red, with the itching most active at the advancing borders, where the fungus was spreading. The condition had been progressively getting worse for the six months prior to his first visit.

The patient had resisted taking western antifungal medicines, and we treated him internally for fungus with herbs and western nutritional products. The rash was unresponsive to internal herbal/nutritional anti-fungals. Topical overthe-counter steroid creams were helpful in relieving itch and reducing the red markings, but the effect would be short lived, perhaps 12 hours at most. I had given him one of my own herbal washes for fungal skin itching. It
included three of the herbs used in the Jie Er Yin Xi Ye formula. My wash was somewhat helpful in relieving the itch and reducing heat and redness, but the response showed no accumulative effect.

With Yin-Care, the patient reported very good results, with redness and itching disappearing after 2 or three days of application. Still, it took about three weeks of daily application, at 35% concentration, to resolve the problem. Overall, I became quite impressed with this herbal wash. I have also used it in several cases of vaginitis, all to good effect.

Yin-Care is available in 4 oz bottles of concentrated liquid. I would highly recommend it for practitioners treating vaginitis or skin infections. Information about Yin-care can be found from the importer, Daniel Hudson, at arborusa.com.

>About the Author:

Jake Fratkin, OMD Lac is a renowned author and teacher in the field of Chinese herbal medicine and has graciously given me permission to reprint his articles. He is author of Chinese Herbal Patent Medicines: The Clinical Desk Reference, 1999 Acupuncturist Of The Year, AAAOM (American Association of Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine), and 2006 Teacher Of The Year, AATAOM (American Association for Teachers of Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine).

Posted by Joyce Marley at 07:27 AM | An Extraordinary Chinese Herbal Product Finds Its Way to North America By Jake Paul Fratkin, OMD

Anxiety in Chinese medicine is almost always associated with a disturbance of the Heart energy. Chinese medicine believes that the Heart houses the mind. The Heart energy is susceptible to being agitated by heat in the body and may result in anxiety, insomnia and restlessness.

Giovanni Maciocia, author of "Obstetrics & Gynecology in Chinese Medicine", devotes a whole chapter to the explanation and treatment of anxiety during pregnancy. In most cases, anxiety can be explained by Heat in the body during pregnancy.

For a proper diagnosis and treatment, Heat in the body must be identified as excess (or Full Heat), deficient (or Empty Heat), or Phlegm Heat. Anxiety and mental restlessness could be present in all patterns of Heat.

As with all differential diagnosis in Chinese medicine, a trained acupuncturist asks questions about many aspects of the patients physical and emotional health. The tongue picture and pulse are important to arrive at a correct diagnosis.

Excess Heat might be accompanied by outbursts of anger, thirst and constipation. Sleep may be disturbed by vivid dreams. The tongue would be red, possibly with redder sides and a dry yellow coating. The pulse would be rapid and have a wiry quality to it like a guitar string. Emotional problems like worry, anger, resentment and frustration often cause energy in the body to become stuck. On a prolonged basis, stuck or stagnant energy, generates Excess Heat.
Deficient Heat is more often associated with feeling warmer and fidgety towards evening. Night sweats and palpitations are common complaints. The tongue is red, often with many cracks and no coating. The pulse is rapid, but very thin and with little force. Constitutionally, a woman may tend to be Yin deficient before becoming pregnant. If she overworks during the pregnancy, this deficiency may be aggravated because her body is using her Blood to nourish the fetus. Yin deficiency causes Empty Heat.

Phlegm Heat symptoms include dizziness, nausea and heaviness in the chest. Anxiety is often more extreme to the point of feeling phobic. The tongue is red with a sticky yellow coating. The pulse is also rapid, but with a slippery feel and pearl-like shape to the trained touch of the acupuncturist's fingers. Poor diet, especially the consumption of spicy or greasy foods, or a diet of excess dairy can lead to the formation of Phlegm Heat in the body.

Although there are some very good herbal formulas that address anxiety due to all of the above patterns, acupuncture, especially in the first three months of pregnancy, is the preferred method of treatment because it does not introduce any substances into the body.

Acupuncture points would be chosen to address both the symptom of anxiety by using points known to calm the mind, and points to clear the specific type of Heat in the body.

About the Author: Joyce Marley is a licensed acupuncturist that provides acupuncture therapy in New Hartford, NY. She writes Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) health articles about acupuncture and Oriental medicine.

Posted by Joyce Marley at 06:31 AM | Acupuncture for Anxiety During Pregnancy

Low back (lumbar) pain has been reported to be one of the most common conditions for which millions of sufferers worldwide seek medical attention. It has numerous causes and can never be lumped into one specific category. The same is true for treatment. There are numerous treatments available, of which chiropractic and acupuncture have reputedly demonstrated their effectiveness for the majority of low back pain syndromes. The most important item in treatment is to achieve a successful level of pain reduction, followed by correction and stabilization of the condition. Most low back pain suffers will wholeheartedly agree that pain relief is paramount, as quickly as possible.

In my almost four decades of acupuncture and chiropractic practice, I have seen thousands of cases of low back pain that have been successfully treated. It was the very rare individual who had to be referred for surgery. However, there are some for which this may be the only viable solution. The vast majority of cases, regardless of the specific cause, have experienced significant pain relief in a very short period of time with the administration of a specialized acupuncture formula. In many cases, pain relief was considerable before chiropractic and/or physiotherapy procedures could be implemented. The procedure is by no means a cure-all for every lumbar pain syndrome, but has proven the test of time in countless cases. It does not do what chiropractic does regarding structure, nor does it do what physical therapy, soft-tissue treatment, physiotherapy, therapeutic massage and other non-invasive procedures can do to strengthen muscles, ligaments or tendons. Its primary application is for early pain relief.

As most practitioners of acupuncture are vitally aware, there are specific points on the body that are key to most low back conditions. The points SI3, BL62, BL40 (54) and to "surround the dragon" are usual points of application. It stands to reason there are many other points that may be selected for a variety of reasons and diagnosis, but as far as a general overall pain relief application, the aforementioned acupuncture points are classic. Any additional points that a practitioner has used successfully may be added to this basic formula without disrupting its effectiveness.

Approximately 90 percent of typical cases of low back pain can be predicted and expected to positively respond when one uses the three major "30" points along with the previous mentioned points. These three powerful points are known as GB30, BL30 and ST30. GB30 is directly over the sciatic nerve notch, a third of the way from the head of the femur on a line drawn from the tip of the coccyx. BL30 is two-fingers breadth (1.5 tsun) from the mid-line (GV-DU MO), bilaterally level with the fourth sacral foramen. This is level with the top of the vertical buttock crease separating the right and left gluteal areas. ST30 is precisely two tsun bilateral to CV (REN) 2, which is directly at the level of the symphysis pubes.

When one uses the additional points of CV3, KI12, CV4 and KI13, the clinical response can be potentially raised another percentage point or two. KI12 is one-half tsun bilateral to CV3, which is one tsun superior to CV2. KI13 is one-half tsun bilateral to CV4, which is one tsun superior to CV3. These four points, along with ST30, makes a total of five specific points on the lower abdomen. Most practitioners and patients alike will find these points unusual, as the pain is in the back. However, its polar opposite effects and the fact that the lower Kidney meridian is the direct opposite of the huo tuo jia ji points on the back make them some of the most powerful points for low back pain.

In essence, the ultimate low back pain acupuncture formula for general pain relief, anti-inflammatory effects, increased blood flow and relaxed supporting muscles is: SI3, BL62, BL40 (54), ST30, BL30, ST30, CV3, KI12, CV4 and KI13, in addition to the huo tuo jia ji points in the area of involvement and local GV points with GV4 (ming men) being specific for lumbar pain. If you use this formula for low back pain, or in addition to points which have shown success in your own practice, it is the very rare patient who will not see outstanding clinical pain relief in a very short time.

It is imperative that other procedures such as gua sha, direct low-level laser, cold therapy and heat therapy also be used. However, these acupuncture points can lead to a successful resolve without the use of ancillary treatment.

Even though I always recommend 12 treatments in every case of lumbar pain as a trial of therapy, I fully expect to take the patient from acute pain relief to stabilization care within the first four visits. Do not become discouraged if it sometimes takes longer. However, the better you become with this procedure, the better your response.

These points are ideally treated with needles, but laser, electronic and percussive stimulation may achieve favorable response. Since half the points are on the posterior of the body and the other half are on the anterior, the patient who has all points treated on the same visit must be flipped over to accommodate both sides of the body. Needle retention is no longer than 10 minutes with either electrical or manual stimulation.

All the best for your success using this formula. Drop me a note with some of your more dramatic responses. I would love to share them in a future article. I have prepared a graphic of these points should you wish to see them on a human form for easy application. Simply send your request for the Ultimate Low Back Acupuncture Formula directly to my e-mail address. All the best in 2010, the Year of the Tiger

About the Author:
John Amaro, L.Ac, D.C. is a renowned author and teacher in the field of medical acupuncture. He is the founder of the International Academy of Medical Acupuncture. He has graciously given me permission to reprint his articles. I thought his experience of adding abdominal points for back pain was interesting in light of my recent research on the Abdominal Acupuncture microsystem.

Posted by Joyce Marley at 06:32 AM | Ultimate Low Back Pain Acupuncture Formula By John Amaro, L.Ac, D.C.