Acupuncture for Inpatients in General Hospitals – Special Features of this Service

Acupuncture and related techniques have increasingly been offered in conventional medical settings in Western societies. The number of patients seeking acupuncture therapy has increase [Chernyak et al 2005]. Acupuncture has become a thriving and notable part of ordinary healthcare systems. The contact of Acupuncture with the Western culture created the concept of Western acupuncture that is an adaptation of Chinese acupuncture using knowledge of anatomy, biochemistry, physiology, and pathology. Acupuncture in hospital became an integrated complementary therapy. Its efficacy is scientifically based, it's a medical specialty and, recently, is considered for coverage by insurance companies of health. Acupuncture as treatment for inpatients has potential to support recovery, to abreviate the period of hospitalization and avoid unnecessary surgeries [SantaAna 2001]. However, few general hospitals offer this service and the scientific literature that describes this activity is practically nonexistent.