Virginia Regulatory Town Hall
Agency
Department of Health Professions
 
Board
Board of Medicine
 
chapter
Regulations Governing the Licensure of Athletic Trainers [18 VAC 85 ‑ 120]
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5/2/25  11:04 am
Commenter: Dr Meredith Murphy

DO NOT ALLOW DRY NEEDLING IN ATHLETIC TRAINERS
 

Allowing poorly and undertrained people to do dry needling is putting patients at risk. The risk for pneumothorax (punctured lung) is very high and clean needle technique is often lost in these seminars. The rigorous years of training, clean needle technique, anatomy, and clinic work we need as acupuncturists cannot be safely replicated in athletic trainers. If you scroll instagram and see posts by athletic trainers and other similar professions doing "dry needling" it is quite alarming, deep needling in the area of the lung, lots of people needling THRU clothing which is unsanitary and so many other horrors that I cannot believe someone thinks is ok to do to another person's body. This is a danger to patients and unnecessary. Please do not allow this to pass. 

CommentID: 234154