Acupuncture for Temporomandibular Joint Pain
I was pleased to see that a group of researchers from Manchester in England (that’s its skyline, above!) did a double-bind randomized controlled study of twenty seven people suffering from temporomandibular joint myofascial pain (TMJ/MP), to see if acupuncture would help them.
The people in the trial either had acupuncture or something called “sham” acupuncture, using a device that was created to create a “placebo control.” The piece of equipment is called the Park Sham Device, and there has been a lot of discussion about whether it is really feasible to do “pretend” acupuncture. This study showed that it is.
The acupuncture was shown to have a greater influence on pain and movement than the “sham” treatment.
This is important: TMJ can be very difficult to treat. Last year there was a report, also from the UK, that acupuncture seemed to be effective, based on an audit of dental practices, and this study just adds to the evidence that we are accumulating.
Dr. Richard G. Petty, MD is a world-renowned authority on the brain, and his revolutionary work on human energy systems has been acclaimed around the globe.
He is also an accredited specialist in internal and metabolic medicine, endocrinology, psychiatry, acupuncture and homeopathy. He has been an innovator and leader of the human potential movement for over thirty years and is also an active researcher, teacher, writer, professional speaker and broadcaster. He is the author of five books, including the groundbreaking and best selling CD series Healing, Meaning and Purpose. He has taught in over 45 countries and 48 states in the last ten years, but spends as much time as possible on his horse farm in Georgia.
