Nerve Damage Acupncture

sweepy

Ok, I appear to have knackered my Ulnar nerve, has anyone had experience of Acupuncture etc for nerve related issues ?

Grunfeld

I have to say the evidence for acupuncture is very robust and it performs no better than placebo. 
I'm not popular with some of my colleagues for saying that but evidence is evidence.

You don't say what the problem is with the ulnar n. but whatever it is, acupuncture wouldn't be my first port of call.

CarpeDiem

If you haven't already done so, I would see your GP. It may require a scan to determine the extent of the damage and, therefore, the best course of treatment. I think @Grunfeld is right that acupuncture isn't the best starting point.

thermionic

I had acupuncture for my pins and needles but it just made it worse.

blobb

I had acupuncture when my neck/nerve issues got too much for me.

Can't say whether it worked or not but at the time I couldn't lie down due to spasms, so was getting virtually zero sleep. Getting a good 45 minutes rest, listening to cheesy Chinese pop music, made the world of difference.

Dr Wen the chap was called, no idea if he was a real doctor though. He also told me to get my hair cut which i'm not sure is official Chinese medicinal practice.

Maynehead

In China acupuncture is a mainstream treatment for nerve related issues such as pain or numbness. Every hospital will offer it as a matter of course and doctors will routinely prescribe it.

You might be able to fool a few people with placebos but surely you can’t fool 1.4 billion people all at once?

Sporky

Maynehead said:

You might be able to fool a few people with placebos but surely you can’t fool 1.4 billion people all at once?

Placebos work.

But you can do it with Smarties, which are cheaper and less hurty than needles.

Maynehead

Sporky said:

Maynehead said:

You might be able to fool a few people with placebos but surely you can’t fool 1.4 billion people all at once?

Placebos work.

But you can do it with Smarties, which are cheaper and less hurty than needles.

Well, if it works then surely it’s worth trying.

Sporky

Not if it's well proven to be no more effective than Smarties.

sweepy

Seeing as its @ a 2 week wait to get an appointment at my surgery and my work physio  is next to useless,, lets say It seems a valid option for me, I'll let you know how it goes. As far as symptoms, classic Ulnar nerve compression, numbness in ring and little finger of my fretting hand along with reduced grip, cold compresses alleviate the symptoms for a short while and then it flares up again 

Maynehead

Sporky said:

Placebos work.

Sporky said:

you can do it with Smarties

Maybe you should start a business treating people with smarties. Make up some wildly scientific sounding theory involving the blue ones, and see how far that gets you.

If you prove to be just as popular and successful as acupuncture then I’m fully willing to admit that you were right all along.

Sporky

Maynehead said:

If you prove to be just as popular and successful as acupuncture then I’m fully willing to admit that you were right all along.

If you're taking popularity over evidence then your opinion isn't enormously well-founded.

scrumhalf

No-one knows why acupuncture works, they just can't pin it down.

ThorpyFX

So I have had acupuncture before for a muscular issue in my right thigh, this worked really well. Although I had a side effect the first time it was done. I.e. I was in hysterical fits of laughter for 30mins and for no reason.

since Christmas I’ve had acupuncture twice a week administered by the physio, this is to help with the sciatica I am recovering from. Overall it’s working really well, the day after each acupuncture session I have a big reduction in pain and increased mobility.

so overall I’m a big fan. It works for me. 

Maynehead

Are you saying that not a single person has benefitted from accupuncture?

Are you saying that all the people who have suffered from back pain for over 10 years and felt complete relief after a single session just got lucky?

There is a difference between quack doctors waving their hand over you to “draw out the bad energy” and direct stimulation of the nervous system using needles.

Have you not seen people massaging their temples when they are stressed, or people rubbing their face after a long day? Even scratching an itch... they’re all examples of nerve stimulation having a real and benefitial effect on the body.

Grouping nerve stimulation treatments along with eating Smarties is a very naive view in my opinion.

richh

@sweepy I had huge problems with ulnar nerve in my right hand last year, that meant it was extremely difficult and painful to play guitar and was affecting my ability to use computers, etc.  I tried all sorts of things, and unfortunately the doctor I saw at our local NHS practice was absolutely useless - my usual doctor is much better but was not available.  They did refer me for physio, but this took forever.

In the meantime, I tried all sorts of things - but never acupuncture.  In the end, a friend strongly recommended a local osteopath (in Oxford).  Long story short, after 2 or 3 sessions, he achieved a massive improvement.  4 months or so on, I'd love to say that it is fully sorted, but in truth it is maybe 80% better.  Eventually I did see a physio and he was very good, and I've been doing the stuff he suggested 3 times a day since.  I can't be sure if this is really helping, but it is certainly not making it worse.

If you'd like any info on this, please PM me, I'm happy to pass on any info I can and whatever you do, good luck.  It seriously depressed me last year, as I was thinking that I'd not be able to go on doing things like playing guitar for the rest of my life.

p90fool

Maynehead said:

Are you saying that not a single person has benefitted from accupuncture?

Have you not seen people massaging their temples when they are stressed, or people rubbing their face after a long day? Even scratching an itch... they’re all examples of nerve stimulation having a real and benefitial effect on the body.

Grouping nerve stimulation treatments along with eating Smarties is a very naive view in my opinion.

Absolutely, but none of those things actually cure a body's mechanical fault, they just alleviate the symptoms.

In other words "go home and take an aspirin". Not much use in the OP's case, really. 

Teyeplayer

Maynehead said:

Sporky said:

Placebos work.

Sporky said:

you can do it with Smarties

Maybe you should start a business treating people with smarties. Make up some wildly scientific sounding theory involving the blue ones, and see how far that gets you.

If you prove to be just as popular and successful as acupuncture then I’m fully willing to admit that you were right all along.

I flipping love Smarties, where do I sign up?

Grunfeld

sweepy said:

Seeing as its @ a 2 week wait to get an appointment at my surgery and my work physio  is next to useless,, lets say It seems a valid option for me...

I'd be inclined to find an effective physio -- this is probably going to be more effective than having a placebo treatment.

@Maynehead -- the placebo effect is complicated.  It is more than one effect for a start.  However, acupuncture has been studied rigorously and when you get rid of all the studies which were too small, not blinded, or had a dozen other problems you end up with really good data on acupuncture -- it performs no better than placebo.  Therefore, it's safe to say, it IS placebo.  The reason why it has been studied so much is because it al least has a plausible mechanism of action (not the energy stuff; the sticking pins in people might plausibly be doing something).  But it has no effect beyond a generalised treatment effect which you see just by having treatment.  So yes, people have benefited from acupuncture -- because people can benefit from placebo.

Placebo is utterly fascinating btw -- it's an area I've been interested in for a while -- seeing from a neuroanatomical point of view what areas of the brain are activated with placebo; if and how these are different from hypnosis [spoiler alert: they are]; and for me, I'm also interested in the clinical application of these effects.  @Sporky is basically spot on with the blue Smarties.

Kalimna

An interesting side point about placebo - a study was done whereby the *same* placebo was given to 2 groups of patients in an attempt to alleviate headache. There was a marked difference in the groups' outcomes, and the only thing separating them was that one group received the pills in a blue packet and the other in red.
Placebos are indeed fascinating, and the neuropsychological effects complex and ocs)ften counter intuitive. However, they are nothing more than effectively dulling a patients' perception of symptoms. The keyword is 'perception'.
I work in an area of medicine (anaesthetics) where i have immediate feedback of the effectiveness of a particulat drug. Nobody in their right mind would suggest giving a placebo anaesthetic. Or chemotherapy, or antibiotic, for example.
But that doesnt change the fact that they have some effect on symptoms.

Adam

sweepy

Well, the issue is stopping me playing guitar and considering the symptoms, I would be amazed if a Placebo effect would be responsible for alleviating the very real symptoms and I am willing to give it a go first