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Acupuncture is one of the most common veterinary integrative medicine modalities.
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Acupuncture can greatly contribute to a rehabilitation protocol by promoting analgesia, tissue healing, and muscle strength.
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Acupuncture is safe, has minimal detrimental side effects, and is well tolerated by most horses.
Acupuncture and Equine Rehabilitation
Section snippets
Key points
History of acupuncture
Acupuncture has been a part of Traditional Chinese Veterinary Medicine (TCVM) for centuries. Ma Shihuang was considered the first man to treat animal diseases with acupuncture and herbal medicine (2696 BCE to 2598 BCE).8 Sun Yang, also known as Bo Le (659 BCE–621 BCE), wrote what is considered the first veterinary acupuncture text, Bo Le’s Canon of Veterinary Acupuncture.8, 9 Since that time, veterinary acupuncture has continued to evolve and is an integral part of TCVM. In more recent times,
Acupoints
Acupoints are focal areas where needles are routinely inserted through the skin (or pressure exerted topically for acupressure) to exert a physiologic effect. Although debate still exists as to what an acupoint is structurally, these areas have been shown to possess unique biophysical characteristics functionally and physiologically. Changes in electric, acoustic, thermal, optical, magnetic, isotopic, and myoelectric responses of acupoints have been shown to differ from surrounding, nonacupoint
Cervical Vertebral Malformation and/or Cervical Pain with or Without Proprioceptive Deficits
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Dorsal and ventral paravertebral points (Jing-Jia-Ji)40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46
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Cervical 9 points (Jiu-Wei)
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(Large Intestine) LI 18, LI 16, LI 11, LI 10, LI 4, LI 1
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(Lung) LU 7
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ST 4, ST 9, ST 10, ST 36, ST 45
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GB 20, GB 21, GB 39, GB 44
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BL 10, BL 11, BL 60, BL 62, BL 67
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(Triple Heater) TH 16, TH 15, TH 5, TH 1
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(Small Intestine) SI 16, SI 3, SI 1
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Chou-Jin, GV 20, GV 16, GV 14, Bai-Hui, GV 2, Wei-Gen, Wei-Jian
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Xi-Mai, luo-Ling-Wu, luo-Zhen
Facial Nerve Paresis
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BL 1, BL 10
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ST 2, ST 4, ST 6, ST 7, ST 36
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LI 20, LI 19, LI 18, LI 11,
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Cited by (15)
Integrative Philosophy: Case Management
2022, Veterinary Clinics of North America - Equine PracticeOptimizing Health – Integrative Medicine & Poor Performance
2022, Veterinary Clinics of North America - Equine PracticeCitation Excerpt :The other is a more modern, evidence-based approach using only acupuncture with needles or laser. It is the experiential opinion of the author that while Medical Acupuncture can be effectively integrated with more conventional treatments for equine sports medicine and rehabilitation problems, adding the more Traditional Asian pattern diagnostics and accompanying treatment options gives the equine clinician more tools to problem-solve vague and challenging performance issues.7 One tool that TCVM can provide the practitioner in evaluating poor performance issues is what is a body scan.
Clinical Application of Acupuncture in Equine Practice
2022, Veterinary Clinics of North America - Equine PracticeCitation Excerpt :Generally, more acute cases are treated more aggressively, receiving several sessions per week. Treatment of chronic cases is typically performed weekly for 3 to 4 sessions usually followed by tapering of frequency to once monthly or on an as-needed basis.40 A recent meta-analysis of 23 human acupuncture studies (3461 patients) showed that short duration (≤30 minutes), less frequent (twice weekly or less) acupuncture sessions yield long-lasting effects.41
Acupuncture for Anaemia and Large Intestine Impaction Associated with Hind Limb Weakness in a Horse: A Case Report
2020, JAMS Journal of Acupuncture and Meridian StudiesCitation Excerpt :Acupuncture has been part of TCVM for centuries. The Bo Le's Canon of Veterinary Acupuncture is considered the first veterinary acupuncture text written by Sun Yang (659 BCE-621 BCE) [4]. The original meaning of “Mai” is blood vessels; studying the meridians as a circulatory system may also be valid [5].
Pharmacopuncture Analgesia Using Flunixin Meglumine Injection into the Acupoint GV1 (Ho Hai) After Elective Castration in Horses
2020, Journal of Equine Veterinary ScienceCitation Excerpt :Acupuncture is an efficient and safe treatment that induces analgesia in horses [1].
Horses Referred to a Teaching Hospital Exclusively for Acupuncture and Herbs: A Three-Year Retrospective Analysis
2019, JAMS Journal of Acupuncture and Meridian StudiesCitation Excerpt :The decision to use electrical stimulation is generally guided by a horse's temperament and the clinical indication. The strongest evidence supporting its use is for musculoskeletal conditions [9], but electroacupuncture is a modern invention and as such historical precedent is unavailable to guide its application. The possible interactions of acupuncture on analgesic and inflammatory pathways in the horse are more extensively reviewed elsewhere [9].
The authors have nothing to disclose.