TCM surgery adopted in clinical practice

Traditional Chinese medicine doesn’t only feature acupuncture and cupping, but also many other effective methods in clinical use.

Local doctors are adopting minimally invasive surgery under TCM therapy to treat pain, which has received good results so far.

The therapy, called acupotomy, is a kind of TCM surgery combining acupuncture and modern surgical theories. It uses acupotome, a kind of bladed needle evolving from the acupuncture needle. Doctors usually use this method to deal with diseases related with soft tissue damage and bone injuries.

During the procedure, doctors use the blade to insert into the acupuncture point, or the space between bones and muscles, and then separate the adhesion site to ease pain and tension.

“We have applied acupotomy to some 100 patients suffering pain due to herpes zoster, joint injuries and facial paralysis and have received very good results in the past two years,” Xu Maolin from Shanghai Yiyang TCM Clinic said. “Compared with Western medicine treatments, acupotomy is cheaper and more convenient, especially among elderly people."