A Miserable Failure of Neijing Acupuncture: A Pain Relief Case

Neijing acupuncture is a medical intervention using needles performed 2000 years ago in China. This therapy takes effect instantly & reliably for most of the conditions that may be encountered in first line medicine. And the effect is long-lasting, with essentially no side effect beyond what may be caused by insertion of a 2 cm long hair thin needle on the legs or arms.

The easement of ailment or relief of abnormal sensation (such as pain, numbness, nauseousness etc) happens like “The wind blows away cloud” (若风之吹云) as described in Lingshu 1 of Neijing.

Patient Response Rate in Neijing Acupuncture

In my experience, Neijing acupuncture can produce over 99 % of patient response rate in instant suffering relief, or instant relief of any abnormal sensation of a disorder. Such abnormal sensation include pain, numbness, itching, nauseousness, irritating, tender, tension, …

No response rate is less than 1%. No response means the patient does not immediately feel any change after needling insertion.

During the treatment, I ask the patient to give me feedback immediately after each needle insertion. I require them to answer the following questions.

1. Do you feel any change of your pain intensity (or the intensity of other type of abnormal sensation)?
2. If you feel less pain, how much percent you feel less? On a scale of 10% to 100%?

A Motor Vehicle Accident Related Case

This case is from my clinic. The patient visited me on August 18, 2024.

Patient: F, 64, Caucasian, Freelance writer

History: This is a motor vehicle accident related case. My assessment report dated on Aug 18 to the insurance company (ICBC, BC, Canada) is cited below:

• “Pt seeking acupuncture tx on Aug 18, complaining severe pain at neck, shoulders, back, leg, feet and hands and symptom of concussions. Pt believes these pain originated from her fibromyalgia which was greatly worsened due to MVA on Mar 3, 2024.
• “Since Mar 3, Pt has been continuously receiving physio and massage tx twice per week for 5 months. but she said she felt no improvement at all so far, except nerve Lidocaine injections produced slight easement of muscle tensions but increased her numbness at extremeties.”

Neijing Acupuncture Miserably Failed

In this case, I inserted over 20 needles on her feet, legs, hands and arms trying to relieve her pain at entire neck, targeting the pain at C1 to T2, but none of the needles produced any pain relief. Not at all!

The patient's feedback to each needle insertion was always the same:

Q: Do you feel any change of the pain intensity?

A: No change yet. Or I am sorry no change yet.

Even worse, the patient even felt instantly more pain at her head, or ear, or eye even my needles were not inserted on her head but far away distally on her feet or hands, aiming at her cervical joints from C1 to C7.

Failed with treating the neck, I moved on to her low back, targeting at L4 to SI, and SI joints, hoping to find even a little bit positive response from the patient.

I miserably failed again. I tried another over 20 needles on her feet, legs, hands and elbows, none of any needle worked, even for a slight pain relief. Even worse, the patient told me after some needles, she felt more pain at low back, although my needles never touched her low back.

The patient visited me again 2 days later for her second acupuncture treatment. I failed miserably again.

Even worse, she messaged me next morning, saying after the second treatment, she got an excruciating headache and neck pain even worse than before.

She said she is sorry but have to discontinue the acupuncture treatment.

What Is Nerve Lidocaine injection

Nerve Lidocaine injection is used to cause numbness or loss of feeling for patients having certain medical procedures. Lidocaine is a local anesthetic. It prevents pain by blocking the signals at the nerve endings in the skin. This medicine does not cause unconsciousness as general anesthetics do when used for surgery.

The injection is applied to the brachial plexus, intercostal, lumbar, or performed as an epidural.

Deep Thinking

I asked the patient where the nerve injections were done on her body. She told me that each time, the neurological doctors injected 7 to 8 injections at her neck and traps and shoulders, and another 7 to 8 injections at her lumbar and hips.

The nerve injection intervention was done twice per week for the last 5 months. The benefit was only temporary muscle tension relief.

After 5 months of nerve injection coupled with 5 months of physio and massage therapy, when she came to see me on Aug 18, the over all net pain relief or pain redution was essentially still zero.

That was the reason she visited me after her friend told her my phone number.

Unfortunately, I failed. Or I can say Neijing acupuncture failed.

Questions for My Readers

As mentioned earlier, the history of this case is as below:

• “Pt seeking acupuncture tx on Aug 18, complaining severe pain at neck, shoulders, back, leg, feet and hands and symptom of concussions. Pt believes these pain originated from her fibromyalgia which was greatly worsened due to MVA on Mar 3, 2024.
• “Since Mar 3, Pt has been continuously receiving physio and massage tx twice per week for 5 months. but she said she felt no improvement at all so far, except nerve Lidocaine injections produced slight easement of muscle tensions but increased her numbness at extremities.”

From this case, I got 3 questions for my readers.

1. What is wrong with Neijing acupuncture in this case?
2. What is wrong with phyisotherapy and massage therapy in this case?
3. What is wrong with nerve Lidociane injections in this case?