Citation

McGeeney BE. Headache 2015; 55(3): 465-469.

Affiliation

Department of Neurology, Boston Medical Center, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, USA.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2015, American Headache Society; American Association for the Study of Headache, Publisher John Wiley and Sons)

DOI

10.1111/head.12524

PMID

25660556

Abstract

BACKGROUND: Alternative and complementary medicines such as acupuncture remain popular with the general public and many clinicians. The term "integrative medicine" is often now used to describe this type of non-science-based medicine, which has become more of a faith-based method of practice, making it harder to challenge. Acupuncture is commonly used to treat headache along with just about any other symptom and condition known to man.

DISCUSSION: Physicians regularly fall into many misunderstandings when erroneously believing a real effect from acupuncture, when there is none. A perfunctory and poorly informed media contribute to the misinformation. Sixteen logical traps are identified which together explain most of the false reasoning behind the alleged effect of acupuncture.

CONCLUSION: Practitioners need to do a better job of discerning truth from information and data available on acupuncture.

Language: en