ABSTRACT
In 2021, the Clinical Practice Guidelines (CPG) for the Management of Chronic Pain was published, and included a section on acupuncture treatment for integrated medicine and chronic headaches. The purpose of this symposium was to discuss the current understanding of the evidence for acupuncture treatment for chronic pain and the expansion of guidelines. As a working group member of the CPG, Dr. Namba Toshimune introduced the process of including acupuncture in the CPG and discussed not only each field of specialty but also the outlook for developing unique CPG for acupuncture. Dr. Kubo presented the status of basic research on acupuncture treatment for pain in recent years, introduced about the effects of acupuncture stimulation on adenosine, orexin, and oxytocin in mice and rats, as well as the specific reactions of acupuncture points to acupuncture stimulation, and emphasized the importance of basic research to establish the effectiveness of acupuncture for chronic pain. Dr. Udo Yukihiro provided a detailed review of clinical research on acupuncture treatment for chronic pain, reporting on the current status of acupuncture treatment methods, stimulation sites, and stimulation methods. Minakawa described the current situation where systematic education for acupuncturists has not been sufficiently implemented and discussed their own acupuncture treatments for patients with chronic pain. We hope that the contents of this symposium will be helpful in clinical practice, research, and education.
