Acupuncture for Lower Respiratory Tract Infection: A Tried and True Method for Curtailing Re-infection in Children

San Diego , CA - According to the World Health Organization, respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is the single most important cause of severe lower respiratory tract infection (LRI) in infants and young children. RSV causes respiratory symptoms from allergy and earache to pneumonia and bronchiolitis. Though less common than upper respiratory infection, the result is an estimated 18,000 to 75,000 hospitalizations and 90 to 1,900 deaths annually in the U.S.

A recent article in Current Opinion in Pediatrics concludes that the way to address what is a worldwide spread of childhood LRI is to do more research in immunotherapy and vaccinations. The authors ascribe the increase in the rate of infection to a rapidly developing bacterial resistance to antibiotic drugs. However, the creation of more diverse vaccines to address these mutations may not be the best answer for susceptible children.

Many parents are beginning to question the wisdom of increasing the number of recommended vaccinations, especially for infants. For many, an alternative to this cycle of continuous vaccinations and related bacterial resistance to antibiotic drugs is the use of acupuncture or traditional Chinese medicine.

In traditional Chinese medicine children are seen as especially vulnerable to respiratory infection because their organ systems are not yet fully developed. Western treatment becomes especially difficult once the child has built a bacterial resistance to antibiotic drugs. One way of working with children is to use sho-ni-shin , a Japanese style of acupuncture that replaces needles with small tools to stimulate acupuncture points and channels. This treatment is painless and very effective. Because children are more sensitive than adults, it often takes fewer treatments to achieve positive results.

Research is accumulating to confirm the success of traditional Chinese medicine in the treatment of respiratory infection. It has shown to be particularly effective when used for asthma, allergies, and sinusitis.

For more information on treating respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) and severe lower respiratory tract infection (LRI) in infants and young children, please contact Pacific College of Oriental Medicine at (800) 729-0941.

 

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