Acupuncture is most well known for its ability to treat pain conditions such as headaches lower back, knee, and neck pain. As has been demonstrated by numerous research studies, acupuncture has been shown to increase the release of endorphins in the brain, which bind to opiate receptors to reduce pain. But according to the National Institutes of Health and the World Health Organization, acupuncture has been shown to have a beneficial effect to reduce symptoms in a wide range of disease including:

Addiction Recovery
• Opioid Withdrawal
• Tobacco Smoking Cessation

Cancer
• Cancer Pain
• Neuropathy
• Nausea and Vomiting post Chemo

Cardiovascular
• Heart Palpitations/Irregular Heartbeat

Chronic Inflammation
• Autoimmune diseases
• Cancer
• Cardiovascular Disease
• Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD)
• Endometriosis
• Fatty Liver Disease
• Inflammatory Bowel Disease
• Multiple Sclerosis (MS)
• Rheumatoid arthritis
• Type 2 Diabetes

Eye, Ear, Nose and Throat
• Red eyes/dry eyes
• Chronic pharyngitis
• Conjunctivitis
• Post-extraction pain
• Tinnitus (ringing in the ears)
• Toothache

Gastrointestinal
• Acute/chronic ulcers
• Acute and chronic gastritis, • Colitis
• Constipation
• Diarrhea/Chronic loose stools
• Food allergies
• Indigestion
• Inflammatory BowelDisease/Crohn’s/Ulcerative Colitis
• Irritable Bowel Syndrome • Nausea and vomiting

Men’s Health
• Chronic Prostatitis
• Erectile Dysfunction
• Infertility

Metabolic Disorders
• High Blood Pressure/Hypertension
• High Cholesterol/Hyperlipidemia
• Hyper/Hypothyroidism/Grave’s Disease/Hashimoto’s Disease
• Insulin Resistance
• Overweight/Obesity
• Type 2 Diabetes

Musculoskeletal Pain
• Back Pain
• Carpal Tunnel Syndrome
• Cervical-brachial syndrome
• Fibromyalgia
• Headache, tension
• Knee Pain/Meniscus Tears/Ligament Tears
• Lower Back Pain
• Myofascial Pain Syndrome
• Neck Pain• Osteoarthritis
• Postoperative Pain
• Sciatica/Lumbar Nerve Root Radiculopathy
• Shoulder Pain/Rotator Cuff Impingement
• Sports injuries/ sprains
• Tendonitis/tennis elbow

Neurological
• Bell’s Palsy
• Headache
• Intercostal Neuralgia/Post Herpetic Myalgia (Shingles)
• Meniere’s disease/dizziness
• Migraine
• Multiple Sclerosis (MS)
• Peripheral Neuropathy

Psychological
• Anxiety
• Depression

Respiratory and Immune System
• Acute sinusitis
• Allergic rhinitis, including hay fever
• Common cold, flu, cough
• Immune system deficiency
• Acute bronchitis, bronchial asthma
• Emphysema
• Asthma
• Season Allergies

Urinary
• Dribbling Urination
• Frequent Urination
• Stress incontinence
• Urinary tract infections
• Urinary Incontinence

Wellness
• Fatigue
• Insomnia
• Stress

Women’s Health
• Cesarean Scar Therapy
• Chronic Pelvic Pain Syndrome
• Endometriosis
• Gestational Diabetes
• Infertility/IVF and IUI care
• Labor induction/Breech Presentation
• Menopausal Hot Flashes
• Menstruation Disorders (irregular, heavy, or painful)
• Morning sickness
• Osteopenia/Osteoporosis
• Prenatal care
• Perinatal care
• Post-natal care
• Premenstrual syndrome (PMS)

While acupuncture is generally considered to not be painful, it should not be considered absolutely painless either. For many conditions, especially musculoskeletal pain, acupuncture works best when the patient experiences some sensation at the local needling site, which is often experienced as tingling, numbness, heaviness, and other feelings of running energy. This is an indication that the needle has been put in the correct location and will produce the optimum healing effect.

If you are sensitive to acupuncture, we can use very thin gauge needles or small, non-penetrating needles held in place with adhesive tape. These can reduce you sensitivity to allow you to receive a full acupuncture treatment and will still produce a healing effect for your condition.

Most major employer-based health insurance offer coverage for acupuncture, as well as Medicare supplemental plans and Veteran’s Affairs plans. The specific level of coverage, the qualifying conditions, and the member deductibles and copayment/coinsurance depend on the details of each individual plan. We can often inquire about member benefits directly with the insurance companies, but its is the patients responsibilities to understand the details of the coverage offered by their health insurance plan. This can information can be determined by contacting member services for your health insurance company directly.

For those who do not have health insurance or have high deductibles, we offer substantial cash rate discounts when paid at time of service.

If done following established safety protocols by a licensed acupuncturist, the risks of acupuncture are very minimal. At Alleva Acupuncture, we follow established safety protocols with regards to needle placement and only use sterile, single-use, disposable needles. We also practice clean needle technique, cleaning the skin of the selected acupuncture points with alcohol to mostly eliminate the risk of infection.

Occasionally, there may be minor bruising at an acupuncture needle location or minor soreness the day after treatment. Both of these conditions typically resolve within a day or two and do not require any additional medical care.

Yes. Since the mid-1970s when the practice of acupuncture first became popular in the United States, there have been over 10,000 scientific studies investigating acupuncture for the treatment for a wide range of diseases. Many of these studies have demonstrated that acupuncture produces beneficial effect for many conditions, and that when combined with conventional treatments, such as pharmaceuticals or physical therapy, greatly enhance the effectiveness of these more common treatments.

Many of the most highly rated healthcare institutions in the country have added acupuncture to their in-patient and out-patient treatment centers. These include:

• Harvard University Health Services

• Johns Hopkins Medicine

• Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center

• George Washington University for Integrative Medicine

• MedStar Georgetown University Hospital

• Columbia University Comprehensive Cancer Center

• Massachusetts General Hospital Cancer Center

• UCLA Health Center for East-West Medicine

• Mayo Clinic

• Cleveland Clinic

• United States Military Health System

For most patients, significant improvement in primary health complaint is likely within 8 to 24 treatments. There are a number of factors, however, that can effect recovery time.

As a general rule of thumb, recovery time and the number of acupuncture treatments needed is directly correlated to the length of time the health complaint has been affecting the patient. A chronic condition that has been present for months or years will take more acupuncture treatments to resolve than a condition that is only weeks old.

Another factor effecting recovery time, is the complexity of the disease and the overall health of the patient. A complex disease affecting internal organs that has already advanced into many health complications will be more difficult to treat than a condition affecting the muscles in a relatively healthy individual.

The age of the patient also is a strong predictor of anticipated recovery time, younger patients, especially children, tend to recovery more quickly and with fewer acupuncture treatments than older patients

Some healthcare professionals says that dry needling is different than acupuncture, but in reality, dry needling is just a specific needling technique that has been part of acupuncture for thousands of years.

Over the past decade, dry needling performed by physical therapists or chiropractors to treat muscle pain, has become quite popular. In dry needling, fine, short, stainless steel needles are inserted through the skin and into painful trigger points in muscle tissue. The needles are then strongly manipulated with a lifting and thrusting technique until the trigger point releases.

While acupuncture does use a set of acupoints with fixed locations throughout the body used to treat the underlying cause of disease, the system has always recognized that knots arise in muscle tissue which cause tremendous pain and dysfunction. These pain points, called “Ashi” points in acupuncture, are located deep in the muscle tissue, just like trigger points are in dry needling. And just like dry needling, acupuncture uses strong lifting and thrusting needle manipulation to release these painful knots. But unlike dry needling, which only addresses superficial muscle pain, acupuncture can also treat the underlying patterns of disharmony that have caused the muscle to painfully knot in the first place. Acupuncture is a comprehensive healthcare system that can relieve acute pain, but more importantly, it also can heal the imbalances in the body to prevent pain from returning.