Acupuncture To Relieve The
Side Effects Of AIDS Treatment

The most common form of treatment for HIV and AIDS is Highly Active Antiretroviral Therapy, or HAART.  This treatment is a combination of multiple drugs used to treat HIV positive patients even if they have not yet developed AIDS.  The side effects of these drugs can be severe but are common to those patients receiving treatments.  Nausea, diarrhea, vomiting, and loss of appetite are side effects that can be serious.  Other abnormalities may show up in the liver and kidneys because of these treatments.

Until recently there were few ways to treat patients and reduce the side effects in the Western world.  AIDS and HIV positive patients who were being treated with HAART had no choice but to endure the side effects of the treatments.  Currently studies are being done to prove that a nine-needle abdominal needle acupuncture formula can ease the side effects of HAART.  This may be an important step in treating patients with HIV or AIDS.  The disease has continued to grow both in the United States and throughout the world.  It is considered an epidemic in the United States and is spreading uncontrollably on other continents. 

AIDS is caused by an infection with a human immunodeficiency virus.  HIV is the early stage of infection; AIDS develops in the advanced stage of HIV disease.  The HIV virus attacks and destroys the body’s immune system.  The Center for Disease Control reports over one million new cases of HIV and AIDS each year.  The importance of finding a method to treat the patient and ease the side effects is a task scientist and researchers have been studying for years.  The nine-needle acupuncture method inserted into the abdominal area help with these side effects.

Did You Know? 

There are some ways you cannot get AIDS! Many of these myths persisted for years after scientists proved AIDS could not be transferred in these ways. You cannot get AIDS from food or water. Again, it is only transferred by sexual contact or contact with body fluids of an individual who has HIV or AIDS. Yes, I know there was a myth flying around you could get AIDS by getting a mosquito bite, but again this is not true. Insects and animals cannot transfer the virus to a human. It is fine to adopt a pet from a person who has AIDS. Giving blood cannot give you AIDS. The danger is in receiving tainted blood that has been donated by someone who has AIDS. Since 1985, this has been rare because all donated blood is run through tests to insure it is not infected with HIV. It is safe to give blood because all medical equipment used is sterilized and clean. Last, you cannot get AIDS from having every-day contact with a person suffering from AIDS. Shaking hands, giving a hug, or being in the same room with an AIDS patient will not cause you to be infected. If you have increased risk factors for developing AIDS, you should have a test done regularly every year.

In a case study of one male AIDS patient many of his side effects were eliminated or eased during his acupuncture treatment.  He was on massive doses of several chemotherapy drugs and was experiencing fatigue, headache, nervousness, lower back pain, shoulder pain, and forgetfulness.  The patient was treated once a week with the nine abdominal needle formula and the results were remarkable.  His fatigue was resolved after receiving eight treatments.  After receiving eleven treatments, his shoulder pain was taken care of.  After ten treatments his nervousness was resolved and seven treatments took care of his forgetfulness and lower back pain.  It only took two treatments to eliminate his headaches. 

More tests and research is needed before it can be definitely said the nine-needle acupuncture method is proved an acceptable treatment for AIDS treatment side effects.  It would be a big step in easing the discomfort AIDS patients experience during treatment. 

AIDS Facts Children who are born with the HIV virus are often diagnosed at an early age and treatments can begin immediately. Children in underdeveloped areas of the world are often orphans as well as born with HIV.

The clinical workers at the American College of Acupuncture & Oriental Medicine have been treating AIDS patients in Houston since 2004.  They have been helping AIDS patients by easing the side effects of the drug treatments at Legacy Community Health Center.  The hope is to expand clinical trials and studies and make this new method of treating the side effects available to more HIV and AIDS patients.

Important Information in AIDS and HIV Issues

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