Contemporary Acupuncture is especially well suited to treating the complex and chronic disorders that plague modern medicine; from chronic pain, chronic fatigue, multiple allergies, and stress disorders, to the symptomatic relief of internal medical complaints in the various organ systems of the body, including neurological, cardio-respiratory, gastro-intestinal, genitourinary, and gynecological complaints. Contemporary Acupuncture has also proven an effective complement to the psychological treatment of post trauma disorders.

Effective treatment relies on a thorough physical examination which includes a detailed medical history, followed by a systematic physical exam, designed to provide instant feedback both diagnostically and with respect to treatment efficacy. The physical exam is indispensable, since chronic pain is often neurological as opposed to structural, and therefore invisible to expensive X-rays, MRI tests, Bone and CT scans.

Acupuncture Physical Medicine (APM) is a modern approach to acupuncture that combines classics-based Japanese and French-meridian acupuncture with Western physical medicine techniques, most notably trigger point dry needling. APM assessment of a patient focuses on palpation of the body for myofascial constrictions, which are referred to as holding patterns. By studying Chinese and Japanese tight tender points, and undertaking a detailed study of myofascial trigger points, practitioners navigate the body to release areas of obstruction. In this way APM assessment and treatment takes as its basis a patient's actual, physical, lived experience of illness or distress.

Acupuncture Physical Medicine draws from classical acupuncture in which a focus on meridians is central. In classical acupuncture, a practitioner looks for signs of over-activity or under-activity, and obstructions in meridian circulation, and then corrects the imbalances and blockages. At the same time, APM draws from Western physical medicine and osteopathy, most notably as taught by the late Janet Travell, M.D. In developing her trigger point teachings Dr. Travell was herself inspired by nineteenth century osteopathic and physical medicine practices of body palpation, which sought out the myofascial constrictions at the root of a patient's pain and dysfunction

Acupuncture Physical Medicine dry needle release of a trigger point is safer than trigger point hypodermic needling and far easier than manual trigger point release, yet as effective as either. APM practitioners use strain-counterstrain compression to ready the trigger point region for needling, activating the taut fascia over muscle trigger points so that relatively shallow acupuncture needling provokes the muscle trigger point to fasciculate and release, without the need to penetrate the muscle itself.

Acupuncture for intractable pain is primarily aimed at relieving myofascial pain by selectively treating "trigger points". A more effective means of treatment incorporates acupuncture energetic theory, blending distal point selection with local application of an ultra thin acupuncture for the express purpose of relieving muscle pathology. A myofascial trigger point is a "hyperirritable spot in a skeletal muscle." The spot is painful on compression and can give rise to characteristic referred pain as well as other disturbances such as sweating, nausea, reduced strength and impaired function. Myofascial trigger points (MTrPs) are commonly seen in both acute and chronic pain conditions and are a commonly missed diagnosis in chronic pain patients.

Master Tung Ching Chang has been referred to as perhaps the greatest acupuncture master who ever lived. Tung was a scholar of the I-Ching, and a traditional Chinese physician from the Shandong Province in Northern China, famous for the miraculous and spontaneous results he would obtain using just a few needles. The acupuncture points he used are unique in that they are located opposite the affected area. In most cases, the patient notices the effect immediately upon insertion of the needle.

Dr. Tung’s Points were a treasured family secret, handed down and refined over many generations. After fleeing for his life during the cultural revolution in China, Master Tung began to teach his secret acupuncture point system.

Most acupuncturists are accustomed to using many needles per treatment, in a course of 10 or more treatments, before they see results. But with Master Tung’s Magic Points, the patient usually feels improvement after only one or two treatments, with very few needles.

Master Tung’s Points are fondly referred to as ‘magic’ because in most cases, these points deliver instant and lasting results. Master Tung’s Points are located opposite the affected area (points on the head can treat the feet, and vice versa). For this reason, the body’s energetic pathways must be kept clear, so the practitioner selects only a few powerful points for treatment.

Tung’s acupuncture is very safe; most of the points are located on the extremities, pushing energy toward a deficiency or pulling it from an excess. Needles are never inserted at the site of pain or injury.

Matsumoto Style acupuncture is an excellent anatomically based acupuncture system of great benefit to chronic pain patients. This approach is largely defined by its use of a highly systematized method of palpation. This style of practice addresses the patient’s pain and health issues from several levels. By looking more deeply into the structural and or constitutional imbalances, which often underlie a patient’s chronic pain complaints, the practitioner is able to assist in a more complete and lasting healing.

Japanese acupuncture relies heavily on point, channel and structural palpation. Matsumoto style acupuncture involves careful palpation of the abdomen and other muscle structures to diagnose and guide the treatment. This method allows both the patient and the practitioner to monitor the progress of each treatment right away. When a correct set of acupuncture points are chosen, the patient feels a change in the palpated structures immediately.

Auricular Therapy is a clinically effective treatment modality utilized for the relief of chronic pain of central origin. This technique has received strong scientific support from numerous double blind studies examining auricular diagnosis and treatment of numerous musculoskeletal disorders. The external ear has been shown to have a unique neural organization, wherein each part of the auricle (ear surface) corresponds to a specific part of the nervous system. Micro-Current Electrical stimulation (MENS) of specific points on the external ear leads to site specific neural responses in different regions of the brain. Auricular therapy is especially useful in conditions such as fibromyalgia, phantom limb pain, complex regional pain syndrome and reflex sympathic dystrophy, primarily influencing the descending pain inhibitory pathways of the central nervous system.

Laser Acupuncture Therapy is proven to bio-stimulate tissue repair and growth. The Laser accelerates wound healing, and decreases inflammation, pain, as well as scar tissue formation. When it comes to pain management, Class IV Lasers are a non-invasive, side effect free treatment that provides dramatic results.

Deepwave® is a percutaneous neuromodulation pain therapy system that utilizes a patented painless microneedle patch electrode called a percutaneous electrode array or "PEA" that facilitates the delivery of therapeutic electrical energy through the skin directly into deep tissue which encompasses the pain site. PEAs are sterile, single-use disposable electrodes comprised of over 1000 microneedles in a 2.5-inch diameter patch. PEAs are comfortable and feel like sand paper or Velcro to the touch. Deepwave® therapy breaks the pain cycle over a regimen comprised of 4 to 6, 30-minute treatments, with each treatment typically separated by 48 hours. Typically, 8 patients out of 10 respond positively to the Deepwave® therapy. In clinical studies as well as real world settings, the average patient response is a 75% reduction in pain that can last up to 48 hours following an initial Deepwave therapy session. Multiple treatments can provide cumulative benefits, reducing or eliminating the need for opiates and other painkillers, allowing patients to lead a much better quality of life.

Modern research shows that acupuncture can affect most of the body's systems - the nervous system, muscle tone, hormone outputs, circulation, antibody production and allergic responses, as well as the respiratory, digestive, urinary, and reproductive systems�.