Acupuncture can help children with chronic pain

Children willingly being stuck with needles may sound like an oxymoron. But acupuncture and other complementary medicine techniques are becoming more and more widely used in children's hospitals.

Acupuncture is a traditional Chinese medicine technique that's been practiced for thousands of years. It involves stimulating points on the body by inserting very thin metal needles in the skin. Based on the concept that symptoms result from disruption in the flow of vital energy known as Qi (pronounced "chi"), an imbalance in the forces of yin and yang, acupuncture seeks to aid healing by restoring balance and flow of Qi, according to the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine at the National Institutes of Health.

"When it comes to treating chronic pain, children respond very well to acupuncture," said Edin Jusufbegovic, M.D., board-certifed pediatric anesthesiologist and medical acupuncturist. "It may come as a surprise that one-third of children's hospitals offer acupuncture for chronic pain."

Acupuncture is not a first-line treatment for pain but part of a multidisciplinary approach that may include medication, injections and/or cognitive-behavioral therapy.

"Acupuncture can be successful in relieving pain from conditions in which mainstream treatments have failed or not delivering expected results," Dr. Jusufbegovic said.

How do you get kids to agree to be poked with needles?

"Children are agreeable if they have the pain and want relief," Dr. Jusufbegovic said. "They tend to be very cooperative. Acupuncture needles are virtually painless because they are much thinner than injection needles and solid. Hollow injection-type needles are painful because they cut the skin."

Dr. Jusufbegovic relieves any anxiety patients or parents may have by first placing one of the hair-fine needles in his own hand before beginning treatment. He also explains that acupuncture has virtually no side effects.

"Even if acupuncture isn't successful in relieving pain, it causes no harm in the process," Dr. Jusufbegovic said. "The only side effect could be some bruising or redness at the insertion site, but that is very rare."