NIH gives acupuncture the nod.

In 1993, up to 12 million people in the United States relied on acupuncture to treat a variety of ailments. Now, a panel convened by the National Institutes of Health has endorsed the practice as a treatment for certain conditions.

NIH convened the 12-member panel to study the evidence on acupuncture, an ancient medical practice in which thin needles are inserted into the skin at key anatomical locations. The treatment is integral to the Chinese health care system. Practitioners believe that patterns of energy called Qi flow through the body and are essential to good health.

The U.S. panel sidestepped the question of Qi as it looked at studies intended to assess the efficacy of acupuncture. The group concluded that the technique is effective for treating people who experience nausea and vomiting following surgery or chemotherapy. Acupuncture also combats the nausea that may accompany pregnancy and the pain experienced after certain dental procedures, the group said.

Acupuncture treatment of other pain-related conditions, such as headache, menstrual cramps, low-back pain, and carpal tunnel syndrome, failed to win the panel's endorsement. Scientific evidence of acupuncture's benefits was less than convincing for these disorders, the group reported. Nonetheless, the panel acknowledged that the treatment may provide relief for individual patients suffering from these conditions.

Acupuncture seems to release naturally produced opioids in the body, a mechanism that may explain the technique's pain-relieving abilities. However, the panel noted, studies also suggest that acupuncture may alter the endocrine and immune systems.