I objet to the separation of dry needle from acupuncture, it is a specialty within acupuncture. To say dry needle is not acupuncture goes against the accepted western definition of acupuncture which is

“a system of complementary medicine that involves pricking the skin or tissues with needles, used to alleviate pain and to treat various physical, mental, and emotional conditions. Originating in ancient China, acupuncture is now widely practiced in the West.”

Chinese medicine and acupuncture, like western medicine, evolves over time. To say that dry needle is not acupuncture is like saying laparoscopic surgery is not part of western medicine because it came into existence within only the last 10 years.

Yuntao Ma, who was one of the gentlemen who helped developed dry needle, was an acupuncturist so I doubt he developed dry needle independent of acupuncture theory and practice.

Specialists in western medicine need more training than your average family doctor is required to have. Since dry needle is a specialty within the acupuncture field then why is it that a person practicing dry needle needs less training than the average acupuncturist

I am not against Physical Therapy or any qualified person doing dry needle. I am against Physical Therapists or any unqualified person doing dry needle with only 20 to 40 hours of training. When acupuncturists in Western schools need 3 years of training in order to practice acupuncture.