Please read the below to understand why only trained and qualified medical professionals are to use acupuncture needles.

What is an Acupuncture Needle? What is a Dry Needle?

A filiform needle, also known as an acupuncture needle, is a medical device typically made of solid stainless steel and should only be inserted by trained medical professionals such as Oriental Medicine Doctors, Physicians, and Practitioners with a minimum of 3 years of experience. A filiform needle is sometimes referred to as a dry needle. A filiform needle, acupuncture needle, and dry needle are all the same. A filiform needle is different than an a hypodermic needle which is hollow to inject or draw fluid. The foundational medical skills and expertise needed to insert a metal object inside of a human body cannot be learned during a seminar or course. Only trained medical professionals have the privilege to use and insert filiform needles into patients.

Do Medical Ethics Matter? How Do Medical Professionals Prevent Death and Injury? What Are the Consequences of Making a Mistake? 

Trained acupuncture physicians undergo thousands of hours of didactic (in-class) and hands-on clinical training to prevent dangerous mistakes such as pneumothorax (the collapse of the lung), internal or external hemorrhaging due to puncturing major arteries and veins (bleeding out) and damaging various vital organs like the kidneys (can be punctured if needles are improperly inserted in the back for back pain for example), liver (can be punctured if needles are improperly inserted in the abdomen for abdominal pain for example). Nerves can be punctured and permanently damaged especially near the spine and limbs if untrained professionals without an in-depth knowledge of medicine insert needles. Oriental medicine interns in training must treat a minimum number of patients to qualify for graduation usually anywhere from 320-400 patients on top of submitting case studies and participating in clinical case reviews under the supervision of a licensed medical professional. As future physicians and medical professionals, students also participate in medical ethics courses and are typically required to write papers discussing medical ethics with their peers, professors and mentors. When is it appropriate to treat a patient? Under what conditions? How are physicians to treat their patients? What method is most appropriate and ethical? Who is allowed to treat a patient? What is the scope of practice for various professionals both medical and non-medical? What is the responsibility of a clinician?

A typical Oriental Medicine Doctor or Acupuncture Physician will first complete pre-medical undergraduate coursework before completing an additional 4 years of medical education. After graduating with a degree in oriental medicine, practitioners must pass 4 national board exams and obtain medical licensure before qualifying as Oriental Medicine Physicians (3 board exams are required for acupuncturists.) One of the 4 board exams is in acupuncture and includes but is not limited to surface anatomy, the depth at which needling is safe or dangerous, underlying anatomy at different depths and locations (specific nerves, veins, arteries, vital organs, viscera), contraindications for certain conditions/ailments, and ethics. This process is regulated on a national level through the NCCAOM and the CCAHM, the governing body of acupuncturists and oriental medical doctors. Any instances of malpractice or injury are reported to the national board and state board as appropriate.

Many physicians go on to complete medical residencies both in the USA and abroad in their chosen specialty for an additional 2-5 years alongside clinical research for a total of 9-13 years of medical education. The consequences of allowing untrained or minimally trained individuals will be devastating for not only the medical profession but more importantly the patients who may be wrongfully subjected to injury or death. 

What’s Big Deal? Why Does Safety Matter? 

Please do not make the mistake of first thinking and later legislating that untrained or minimally individuals can safely utilize filiform needles, a regulated medical device. 

(No part of this statement was produced by AI and is from my own personal and professional experience.)