Auriculotherapy is the stimulation of the auricle of the external
ear for the diagnosis and treatment of health conditions in other
parts of the body. It is also known as ear acupuncture or auricular
acupuncture when the stimulation is achieved by the insertion of
acupuncture needles, whereas the term auriculotherapy often refers
to electrical stimulation of the surface of ear reflex points. Specific
points on the ear can also be stimulated by manual pressure, referred
to as auricular acupressure or ear reflexology. Acupuncture points
on the ear can also be stimulated with lasers, magnets, and ear
pellets.
How is Auriculotherapy
different from Acupuncture?
Auriculotherapy is typically considered one form of acupuncture,
but there are both differences and similarities between the two
procedures. Acupuncture is a form of medical treatment involving
the stimulation of acupuncture points located on energy channels
extending over the surface of the body, which are known as meridians.
From the philosophy of Taoism, there are six Yang meridians and
six Yin meridians. In classical acupuncture, it is the Yang meridians
that directly connect to the external ear. These energy lines of
force are blocked or congested when there is some pathology in a
specific area of the body. Insertion of acupuncture needles into
specific acupoints can relieve the symptoms and underlying pathology
of a particular health problem. Some of the meridian energy lines
of force connect to the external ear, thus creating the field of
auricular acupuncture. Different perspectives of auriculotherapy
focus not on the acupuncture meridians but on the use of the ear
as a localized reflex system connected to the central nervous system.
What is the History of
Auriculotherapy?
The earliest written records of ear acupuncture date back to the
Yellow Emperor's Classic of Internal Medicine, a compilation of
acupuncture procedures that were in practice in 500 BC. Within this
extensive text that covers a variety of acupuncture treatments,
there is mention of specific acupuncture points on the external
ear for the relief of certain medical disorders. However, the manner
in which auricular acupuncture is practiced today in China is actually
based upon more recent discoveries that occurred in France in the
1950's. The Traditional Oriental Medicine practiced in ancient China
included just a scattered array of acupoints on the auricle for
just a few health problems, whereas the current practice of auricular
acupuncture shows a more complete organization of ear reflex points
that can be used to relieve many health problems. In the West, the
earliest references to ear treatments were referred to in medical
records from ancient Egypt, Greece, and Rome. The most complete
descriptions of medical treatments through the ear were recorded
in ancient Persia. A trail of evidence of the use of auricular stimulation
for the treatment of sciatica back pain can be followed from these
Persian records through medieval Europe to modern France. Since
the 1950's, the use of specific ear points as a complete reflex
system that can alleviate many health problems has been utilized
by clinical practitioners in other parts of Europe, in Asia, and
in North and South America.
Who discovered Auriculotherapy?
While the earliest uses of ear acupuncture points dates back to
ancient China, modern applications of auriculotherapy are based
on the work of Dr. Paul Nogier of Lyon, France. In the 1950's, Dr.
Nogier noticed a strange scar on the upper ear of some of his patients.
He found that all of them had been treated for sciatica pain by
a local practitioner. This woman had cauterized a specific area
of the external ear in order to relieve their low back pain. Dr.
Nogier conducted a similar procedure on his own sciatica patients
and found that their back pain was also reduced. He then tried other
means of stimulating this "sciatica point," including the use of
acupuncture needles, and found that they too were effective in alleviating
sciatica pain. The brilliance of Dr. Nogier was in extending this
one observation into a more comprehensive model. Dr. Nogier theorized
that if an area of the upper external ear is effective in treating
low back pain, maybe other parts of the ear could treat other parts
of the body. The ear is said to represent the whole anatomical body,
but in an upside down orientation. Nogier's theory contended that
the auricle could be compared to an inverted fetus, with the head
represented on the lower ear lobe, the feet at the top of the external
ear, and the rest of the body in-between. This model was first presented
to naturopathic practitioners in France in 1957, then spread to
acupuncturists in Germany, and finally was translated into Chinese.
The Chinese adopted the inverted fetus model of ear
acupuncture in 1958.
How is Auriculotherapy
related to other forms of Alternative Medicine?
Auriculotherapy is considered one form of alternative medicine,
which also includes acupuncture, chiropractic manipulation, homeopathy,
and herbology. All of these techniques are also referred to as
Complementary Medicine, in that they are not only an alternative
to conventional Western medical treatments, they can serve as an
additional procedure which complements the practice of conventional
medicine. Auriculotherapy can reduce the tension, stress, and pain
not fully relieved by other medical procedures, but works best when
implemented as part of a multidisciplinary complement of multiple
treatment approaches. While ear acupuncture is often used in conjunction
with body acupuncture, auriculotherapy can also effectively relieve
pain, stress and tension when used by itself.
Is Auriculotherapy accepted
by Conventional Western Medicine?
While ear acupuncture has been practiced in Asia for over 2,000
years and auriculotherapy has been used in continental Europe for
the past 40 years, it is only recently been considered by most medical
doctors in the United States. Most MD's do not have sufficient information
about auriculotherapy to make an informed comment on its effectiveness.
In November of 1997, a consensus panel of the U.S National Institutes
of Health gave conditional approval of the practice of acupuncture.
They included an evaluation of those studies which supported the
use of ear acupuncture for pain relief and addiction treatment.
As more research accumulates on the efficacy of auriculotherapy,
it is expected that even more physicians will acknowledge the benefits
of auriculotherapy.
