Acupuncture

Acupuncture is a therapeutic technique used to encourage natural healing, reduce pain and improve function. It involves the insertion of very fine needles through the skin at specific points throughout the body. Anatomical acupuncture is a modern approach integrating traditional Chinese medicine with Western science and is taught through the Acupuncture Foundation of Canada Institute (AFCI). When combined with your physiotherapist’s knowledge of anatomy, physiology, and musculoskeletal pathology, acupuncture can be a highly effective treatment modality.
Acupuncture can assist in the treatment of many conditions including headaches, back and neck pain, frozen shoulder, arthritis, all forms of tendonitis, neuropathy (nerve-related pain), and post-surgical pain. Because acupuncture needles are extremely fine, most people feel little to no discomfort. The needles are defined as atraumatic as they cause no physical damage to the skin or tissue below.
Recent medical studies support the clinical evidence that acupuncture can act as an anti-inflammatory agent in your body and assist in tissue healing. With careful insertion of the acupuncture needles, the body senses the stimulus of a foreign object within the skin barrier, which then initiates various chemical changes. In this way, acupuncture causes the body to release its own pain-relieving chemicals called endorphins. These chemicals help block the relay of pain messages from the body to the brain. The result is relief of pain, general relaxation, and restoration of the body’s natural healing mechanisms.
Acupuncture, as part of a holistic approach to health care, can promote physical and emotional well-being.