Acupuncture provides the healing touch for AIDS patients

• Acupuncture may help relieve bloating, cramping, and appetite loss among HIV-infected people taking potent drug cocktails to keep the virus in check.
• Since they feel better after acupuncture, people are more likely to take their drugs properly, resulting in better disease control, says researcher Elizabeth Sommers, MPH, research director of the AIDS Care Project/Pathways to Wellness in Boston.
• While powerful AIDS drugs are credited with helping HIV-infected people live longer, the drugs often cause a host of digestive problems, she tells WebMD.
• For three weeks the acupuncture included four sites commonly associated with improvement of digestive symptoms, such as nausea, vomiting, and bowel upset.
• For another three weeks they received acupuncture at four sites nearby sites not noted for affecting digestive conditions.
• The patients were unaware of which type of acupuncture they were receiving at any given time.
• Both sets of acupuncture points improved digestive symptoms.
• However, acupuncture at the sites targeting digestive symptoms was more effective in controlling loss of appetite, abdominal cramps, and bloating.
• More People Take Their Drugs After Acupuncture Among the 20% of people who said they weren't taking their AIDS medications as directed at the start of the study, half reported improvement after acupuncture treatment, she says.
• "It's worth a try," he tells WebMD.
• Hal Huff, ND, a naturopathic doctor at the Canadian College of Naturopathic Medicine in Toronto, says the results are similar to what he sees in his own practice.
• "We give acupuncture in conjunction with other treatments such as dietary changes and nutritional supplements, so I can't say for certain whether it's the acupuncture or the whole package that results in improvement," Huff tells WebMD.
• "But people report fewer digestive problems and improved compliance with their AIDS medications."