In 2003, the World Health Organization (WHO) conducted a review of controlled acupuncture trials and in a final report listed the following diseases and disorders as effectively treated with acupuncture:

  • Adverse reactions to radiotherapy and/or chemotherapy

  • Allergic rhinitis (including hay fever)

  • Biliary colic

  • Depression (including depressive neurosis and depression following stroke)

  • Dysentery, acute bacillary

  • Dysmenorrhoea, primary

  • Epigastralgia, acute (in peptic ulcer, acute and chronic gastritis, and gastrospasm)

  • Facial pain (including craniomandibular disorders)

  • Headache

  • Hypertension, essential

  • Hypotension, primary

  • Induction of labour

  • Knee pain

  • Leukopenia

  • Low back pain

  • Malposition of fetus, correction of

  • Morning sickness

  • Nausea and vomiting

  • Neck pain

  • Pain in dentistry (including dental pain and temporomandibular dysfunction)

  • Periarthritis of shoulder

  • Postoperative pain

  • Renal colic

  • Rheumatoid arthritis

  • Sciatica

  • Sprain

  • Stroke

  • Tennis elbow

Additionally the World Health Organization (WHO) report listed the following diseases, symptoms or conditions for which the therapeutic effect of acupuncture has been shown:

  • Abdominal pain (in acute gastroenteritis or due to gastrointestinal spasm)

  • Acne vulgaris                                                      

  • Alcohol dependence and detoxification

  • Bell’s palsy                                                          

  • Bronchial asthma

  • Cancer pain                                                        

  • Cardiac neurosis

  • Cholecystitis, chronic, with acute exacerbation     

  • Cholelithiasis

  • Competition stress syndrome                               

  • Craniocerebral injury, closed

  • Diabetes mellitus, non-insulin-dependent              

  • Earache

  • Epidemic haemorrhagic fever                               

  • Epistaxis (nosebleed), simple

  • Eye pain due to subconjunctival injection (without generalized or local disease)

  • Female infertility

  • Facial spasm                                                        

  • Female urethral syndrome

  • Fibromyalgia and fasciitis                                   

  • Gastrokinetic disturbance

  • Gouty arthritis                                                     

  • Hepatitis B virus carrier status

  • Herpes zoster (human (alpha) herpesvirus 3)         

  • Hyperlipaemia

  • Hypo-ovarianism                                                 

  • Insomnia

  • Labour pain                                                         

  • Lactation, deficiency

  • Male sexual dysfunction, non-organic                  

  • Ménière disease

  • Neuralgia, post-herpetic                                       

  • Neurodermatitis

  • Obesity                                                               

  • Opium, cocaine and heroin dependence

  • Osteoarthritis                                                     

  • Pain due to endoscopic examination

  • Pain in thromboangiitis obliterans                         

  • Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS)

  • Postextubation in children                                    

  • Postoperative convalescence

  • Premenstrual syndrome                                      

  • Prostatitis, chronic

  • Pruritus (itching)                                                

  • Radicular and pseudoradicular pain syndrome

  • Raynaud syndrome, primary                                  

  • Recurrent lower urinary-tract infection

  • Reflex sympathetic dystrophy                                

  • Retention of urine, traumatic

  • Schizophrenia                                                      

  • Sialism, drug-induced

  • Sjögren syndrome                                                

  • Sore throat (including tonsillitis)

  • Spine pain, acute                                                

  • Stiff neck

  • Temporomandibular joint dysfunction                

  • Tietze syndrome

  • Tobacco dependence                                          

  • Tourette syndrome

  • Ulcerative colitis, chronic                                      

  • Urolithiasis (kidney stones)

  • Vascular dementia                                                

  • Whooping cough (pertussis)

 

 

Autum-Rotach-Logo-Web.png

"I've cut down my pain medication by more than half.  Over the years, I've tried many other therapy methods, but acupuncture is what works best for me." 

-C.G.