Which treatment is more effective, acupuncture or massage?

There is no absolute superiority or inferiority between acupuncture and massage. The effectiveness depends entirely on the disease, the population and even the patient's own acceptance. It is impossible to generalize.

When the 20-year-old programmer who was treated last week came in with stiff neck, his neck was as crooked as a sunflower blown by the wind. He had to move his entire upper body when he turned around. I first massaged his shoulder joints and loosened his superficial muscles for five minutes. He said that the soreness and swelling had subsided a little, but when he turned his neck, he still felt pain in the back of his neck. I pumped out the air, and then inserted two needles into his hand at the Houxi and Stochastic Points. After twisting the needle for two minutes, he slowly moved his neck. He was able to move his neck to a near-normal angle on the spot. He was injected again the next day and everything was fine. If he had just relied on massage, it would have taken at least three or four times to recover to this level.

But let’s talk about the 72-year-old Aunt Zhang who came here last month. She suffers from back pain all year round. Her entire erector spinae muscles feel as hard as sun-dried beef tendons, and she also has some osteoporosis. When she heard that she was going to get an acupuncture, she waved her hands and said she was dizzy. I used rolling and palm-kneading techniques on her every time. After kneading the knots in her lower back, she stretched out and said, "I feel like the big stone on my back has finally been lifted off." She felt comfortable for three or four days. In this case, I had to give her an acupuncture. She was so nervous that her muscles tightened even more, and the effect was not as real as a massage.

The colleagues I have contacted also have different tendencies. Doctors who practice acupuncture always say that acupuncture has stronger penetration. It can not only loosen deep soft tissues, but also regulate the internal organs through meridians. It can treat internal medicine-related problems such as chronic gastroenteritis and dysmenorrhea. The effect is much faster than massage.； A master who has been doing massage for 20 to 30 years believes that the advantage of massage is that "there is a precise point under the hand." You can tell which muscles are spasming or have adhesions by touching them. The intensity can be adjusted at any time. It is more acceptable and safer for the elderly, children, or people who are afraid of needles.

In fact, these two are like kitchen knives and fruit knives at home. There is no saying that one is better than the other. You must be comfortable with a kitchen knife when cutting vegetables. You can't also hold the kitchen knife when peeling apples, right? Many times we will use them in combination. For example, for patients in the acute stage of lumbar disc herniation, who are in so much pain that they cannot straighten their waists, they will first inject a few needles to reduce the edema in the nerve roots. After the pain subsides, they can then use light techniques to relax the tense psoas major and piriformis muscles, which can recover much faster than using one method alone.

Of course, contraindications must also be taken into consideration. Those with coagulation dysfunction or local skin damage and infection must not choose acupuncture. Those with acute sprains within 48 hours, severe osteoporosis or fractures should not be massaged casually. It is best to consult a professional doctor for evaluation before choosing. The one that suits you will have the best effect.