A recent study at the U-M Chronic Pain and Fatigue Research Center found that the effects of acupuncture in patients with Fibromyalgia had similar effects to pain medication.  The twenty women who participated in the study were asked to discontinue use of their pain medication throughout the course of the study, which focused on both regular and sham acupuncture.

“Using brain imaging, a University of Michigan study provides novel evidence that traditional Chinese acupuncture affects the brain’s long-term ability to regulate pain.

The results appear online ahead of print in the September Journal of NeuroImage.

In the study, researchers at the U-M Chronic Pain and Fatigue Research Center showed acupuncture increased the binding availability of mu-opoid receptors (MOR) in regions of the brain that process and dampen pain signals – specifically the cingulate, insula, caudate, thalamus and amygdala. Opioid painkillers, such as morphine, codeine and other medications, are thought to work by binding to these opioid receptors in the brain and spinal cord.”

“These findings could spur a new direction in the field of acupuncture research following recent controversy over large studies showing that sham acupuncture is as effective as real acupuncture in reducing chronic pain.

‘Interestingly both acupuncture and sham acupuncture groups had similar reductions in clinical pain,” Harris says. “But the mechanisms leading to pain relief are distinctly different.’”

These are exciting findings for both acupuncture and holistic healing as a whole.  We encourage readers to post and share their acupuncture experiences.