Several recent studies confirm that acupuncture is a good option if you have knee pain due to osteoarthritis. Studies show that arthroscopic knee surgery is generally not effective, that steroid injections are not only ineffective but damage knee cartilage, and that acupuncture can have a positive effect. In the 1950s, orthopedic surgeons felt that tendon pain was due to inflammation. Many years ago it was proven that we were wrong.
Most tendon-related pain is due to degeneration or tendon wear. Think about your favorite pair of blue jeans. Your knee discolors, then frays, so you have a hole that wore out. This process is known as tendinosis.
It is not an inflammatory condition. Researchers now believe that injecting cortisone helps relieve pain due to an effect on nerves in the region where it was injected. Cortisone doesn't cure tendinosis. In fact, it can delay healing or cause a worsening of tendinosis.
Andrew Weil didn't know exactly how he injured his knee; all he knew was that it hurt. But instead of resorting to cortisone injections or high doses of pain relievers, Weil turned to the ancient Chinese practice of acupuncture. It worked, my knee was much better, Weil says.
