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POSTER
PRESENTATIONS
Integration
Of Acupuncture Into
An Army Physical Medicine And Rehabilitation Clinic
Steven Braverman, MD
ABSTRACT
Context In 1996, 2 US Army physiatrists completed the UCLA Medical Acupuncture
course with the goal of integrating clinical acupuncture and acupuncture
research into an academic physical medicine and rehabilitation (PM&R)
program.
Objective Research goals were defined to appropriately match
the clinical experience of the physiatrists to include patient outcome
documentation and case reports.
Methods Retrospective data collection from medical records of
the first 95 patients to complete treatment begun in 1997 and 1998 with
1 to 6 months of follow-up.
Outcomes Complete resolution, improvement without resolution,
or no improvement. Demographic information was obtained on the patients,
and the outcomes were compared between providers.
Results A total of 81% of patients had a chronic condition. Overall,
39% of patients had complete resolution of their condition, 40% improved,
and 21% did not improve. Provider differences were not statistically
significant. Complications were few. At 2 years, research productivity
includes 2 poster presentations, 2 published abstracts, 1 publication
in progress with resident contribution, and 1 review article published
in a peer-reviewed journal.
Conclusions Acupuncture was safe and effective and produced marked
symptomatic improvement in more than 75% of these patients. Practitioners
may continue to use the medical literature while gaining the initial
experience required to produce higher-level research. Integration of
acupuncture into Army PM&R clinics is a safe way to treat patients
with pain.
AUTHOR INFORMATION
Dr Steven Braverman is the Deputy Commander for Clinical
Services at Moncrief Army Community Hospital in Fort Jackson, South
Carolina. Dr Braverman is a Lieutenant Colonel in the United States
Army. Previously, he was the PM&R Residency Program Director and
Chief of the Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Service at Walter
Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, DC.
Steven Braverman,
MD
E-mail: Sbraverman@sc.rr.com
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