RECOVER LOST VISION CAUSED BY DEGENERATIVE EYE CONDITIONS
In general acupuncture is used with good results on several disorders regarding eyes and vision. For example, AMD (age-related macular-degeneration), dry eyes, retinitis pigmentosa, and glaucoma etc. There are 1000's of Western Named "eye conditions". We look at each person individually and treat the whole person, not just your "eyes". We diagnosis your symptoms from a Traditional Chinese medical point of view and use a unique and specialized style of acupuncture to treat the "eyes".
We do not treat Western name diseases but have seen amazing results with Acupuncture for eye related disorders
Other eye conditions respond favorably to acupuncture as well. These can be but limited to dry eyes, calcium and cholesterol builds up, and other optic issues.
Research on acupuncture shows that stimulus with acupuncture affects the blood circulation significantly. With the increased circulation within the eyes, it provides good growth conditions for the cells and prevents the eye from breaking down and dying.
It is very important to emphasize that we are not a Western Eye doctors, optometrists, or ophthalmologists. It is mandatory that all of our eye patients visit a medical doctor for diagnostics before coming to our clinic and after receiving treatment with acupuncture.
HOW EXACTLY ARE EYE CONDITIONS BEING TREATED WITH ACUPUNCTURE?
For eye conditions that are chronic it will demand an intensive course of treatments, especially at the startup. Our treatments are broken into 3 phases:
Phase 1 Relief Care, which is to determine your Rate of Response to Acupuncture. This phase typically requires 8-10 treatments to determine if your body will respond to acupuncture AND how fast or slow does your body respond to acupuncture. The treatments are administered twice per day with 1 to 2 hours rest in between.
Phase 2 Corrective Care, which is to begin the restoration of organ function. Eye conditions are the result of organ malfunction, in order to have sustained vision improvement, we must address the underlying organ malfunctions. This phase typically requires an additional 8-10 treatments (2 treatments per day).
Phase 3 Maintenance Care, which is to maintain organ function at optimal levels. The treatments require vary based on your dietary habits, number of medications you are currently taking, and organ function.
For patients that are traveling from out of town we do specialized programs of 3-4 treatments per day. Depending on the needs of the patients we can compress our "2 weeks of treatment down to 1 week". (Please ask for details)
We also will be prescribing customized herbs that are specific for your body and your eyes.
We will also send you home with eye exercises and follow up instructions.
FAQ ABOUT OUR VISION RECOVERY ACUPUNCTURE (VRA) FOR EYE CONDITIONS
Q: Is this normal acupuncture why don't more acupuncturists do this?
We use a combination of Acu Nova, various "micro-acupuncture" systems that use ears, scalp, hands and feet, and other protocols depending on the client and the condition being treated. These two special and unique systems are the Micro acupuncture, AcuNova. These systems are amazing for eyes issues and relatively unknown to most acupuncturists.
Q: How many needles do you use and where do they go?
Most treatments use about 10-15 pins, usually in the hands, feet, arms, legs and head. NO needles go in the eyes!
Q: Do you do anything other than acupuncture?
We use micro current, electro stim, eye exercises, supplements, Chinese herbal custom formulas, and eye vision massaging goggles.
Q: What should you expect?
Most patients will notice some changes within the first 6-10 treatments. Most commonly noted are increased brightness, better acuity and a larger visual field. Your vision will improve as we move through the process.
If patients are NOT seeing improvement after 10 treatments, then we suggest a thorough blood panel to see what other medical issues might be stopping them from better vision. There are numerous reason why our vision can be comprised and usually a blood panel will reveal these medical issues.
Each person's health is different and therefore their vision condition will be different. That's why we customize each program based on their Rate of Response to Acupuncture.
Below are some researches on how Acupuncture works for eye disorders:
An Acupuncture Protocol For Treatment Of Age-Related Macular Degeneration: A Second Report - Alston C. Lundgren, MD
ABSTRACT
Background
Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is the major cause of vision loss in older people. An earlier publication reported preliminary data. This follow-up report confirms earlier results and expands treatment parameters.
Objectives
To evaluate the efficacy and safety of acupuncture to treat AMD and to explore treatment parameters.
Design, Setting, and Patients
Case series of 108 patients (56 women/52 men, median age 76.1 years [range 47-96 years]), seen at a single private practice in New Mexico (US) in 2003-2004. All patients were diagnosed by their ophthalmologist as having macular degeneration. Thirty-two percent (32%) of eyes had wet AMD, 50% dry, and 18% were not specified.
Intervention
An acupuncture approach combining periorbital electrical stimulation, ear acupuncture, and a French Energetic technique was applied to each patient.
Main Outcome Measures
Increase in visual acuity measured by Early Detection and Treatment of Diabetic Retinopathy Studies (EDTRS) charts. Results Overall, 69% of patients improved in distant vision and 69% improved in near vision. Patients with both wet and dry forms of AMD benefited equally. Half of patients had subjective vision improvement, 33% of patients gained more than 2 lines on EDTRS charts, 20% reported lessening or disappearance of scotomas, 7% of patients noted improved color vision. The only complication was an occasional ecchymosis and recovery was uneventful.
Conclusion
Visual acuity in AMD may be improved by acupuncture. Further research is necessary to optimize the protocol and elucidate the mechanism of action.
Please see more at: http://www.n5ev.com/uploads/3/0/9/7/30974833/lundgrenarticle2.pdf
A Pilot study on how acupuncture works on treating patients with Retinitis Pigmentosa:
- Ava K Bittner OD PhD, Jeffrey M Gould MEd LAc, Andy Rosenfarb ND LAc, Collin Rozanski, Gislin Dagnelie PhD
ABSTRACT
Background
Patients with retinitis pigmentosa are motivated to try complementary or integrative therapies to slow disease progression. Basic science, clinical research and retinitis pigmentosa patients' self-reports support the hypothesis that acupuncture may improve visual function.
Methods
A prospective, case series, pilot study enrolled 12 adult patients with RP treated at an academic medical centre with a standardised protocol that combined electroacupuncture to the forehead and below the eyes and acupuncture to the body, at 10 half-hour sessionsover two weeks. Pre- and post-treatment tests included Early Treatment Diabetic Retinopathy Study visual acuity (VA), Pelli-Robson contrast sensitivity (CS), Goldmann visual fields, and dark-adapted full-field stimulus threshold (FST)(n = 9). Scotopic
Sensitivity Tester-1 (SST-1) dark-adaptometry was performed on the last two subjects.
Results
Six of 12 subjects had measurable, significant visual function improvements after treatment. Three of nine subjects tested with the FST had a significant 10.3 to 17.5 dB (that is, 13- to 53-fold) improvement in both eyes at one week after acupuncture, maintained for at least 10 to 12 months, which was well outside typical test-retest variability (95% CI: 3-3.5 dB) previously found in retinitis pigmentosa. SST-1 dark-adaptation was shortened in both subjects tested on average by 48.5 per cent at one week (range 36 to 62 per cent across 10 to 30 dB), which was outside typical coefficients of variation of less than 30 per cent previously determined in patients with retinitis pigmentosa and normals. Four of the five subjects with psychophysically measured scotopic sensitivity improvements reported subjective improvements in vision at night or in dark environments. One subject had 0.2 logMAR improvement in VA; another had 0.55 logCS improvement. Another subject developed more than 20 per cent improvement in the area of the Goldmann visual fields. The acupuncture protocol was completed and well tolerated by all, without adverse events or visual loss.
Conclusions
Acupuncture entails minimal risk, if administered by a well-trained acupuncturist and may have significant, measurable benefits on residual visual function in patients with retinitis pigmentosa, in particular scotopic sensitivity, which had not previously been studied. These preliminary findings support the need for future controlled studies of potential mechanisms."
Please see more at:
http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/cxo.12117/full