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By JEAN ENERSEN / KING 5 News
SEATTLE
- The Northwest has long been a good source for alternative medicine. But now
acupuncture is going mainstream. Young patients at Seattle’s Children's Hospital
are being treated with the ancient Chinese medicine for everything from pain to
ADHD.
Seven-year-old Sophia visits her doctor with no hesitation, even though what
awaits her are needles -- four of them in her legs.
After abdominal surgery two weeks ago for a urinary tract problem, Sophia is
getting an acupuncture treatment to ease pain and improve muscle strength in the
problem area.
"From my experience, I think its helped me a lot and it's not very scary, but at
first you're a little nervous when you first start because you're like, ‘is it
going to hurt?’" said Sophia.
Tiny needles are encased in an adhesive tape to look like little band-aids. They
are perceived better because they don't give patients the sensation of a long
needle.
Bubbles distract and force Sophia to take big breaths of air. She is remarkably
at ease with the prickly procedure, but many children and their parents are
terrified by the idea.
Dr. Anjana Kundu spends a lot of time reassuring patients,"explaining to them
what to expect even demonstrating it to them on a parent, on their toys,
sometimes even on myself."
Children's Hospital now uses acupuncture to treat children with all kinds of
health problems, not just pain. Its used to help with the nausea related to
chemotherapy, asthma, seizures, reflux, even behavioral disorders like ADHD.
"Because parents have felt that it is difficult to deal with ADHD as it is, the
side effects of the conventional medications, families are looking for a good
balance,” Dr. Kundu said.
That may mean a family can manage the disorder with fewer medicines or none at
all.
For more of the story:
http://www.nwcn.com/health/children/stories/
NW_090205HEBacupunctureEL.1b8e4d78.html |