Acupuncture and the rational use of medicines: a literature review.
Keywords:
Acupuncture, Rational use of medicines, Complementary therapies, Complementary and alternative medicineAbstract
According to the National Policy on Integrative and Complementary Practices, acupuncture is a health intervention that consists of the insertion of fine needles to stimulate points all over the body in order to promote, maintain, or recover health. From the perspective of safety and effectiveness, acupuncture is an alternative to the risks associated with conventional treatments, leading to the assumption that secondary benefits are occurring - such as modifications in the pattern of medication use by individuals undergoing treatment with acupuncture. This review, drawn from studies published free of charge on Pubmed from January 2019 to June 2022, aims to consolidate the published scientific content available when talking about the relationship of treatment employing acupuncture and the rational use of medications. This relationship between the use of acupuncture, as a complementary health practice, and the drug therapy adopted seems more evident in studies related to mental health, in which it was possible to demonstrate that this association in the treatment can lead to the prevention of increased dosage or the addition of drugs to the treatment. In studies related to pain, the investigations about this relationship are still incipient, but they show a promising area for studies.
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