In 1997, the National Institutes of Health accepted acupuncture therapy as an acceptable procedure complementary to Western medicine [1]. Evidence for its therapeutic effects comes mainly from clinical practice and research into pain control, fibromyalgia, headaches, Parkinson’s disease, schizophrenia, and depression [2]. Acupuncture therapy can be administered using either manual insertion of needles or electroacupuncture (EA), a mild electrical stimulation of acupoints. Extended acupuncture methods may involve finger pressure (acupressure) and laser therapy [3].
By National Institute on Drug Abuse. And User:Timeshifter. I (Timeshifter)[Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons