Acupuncture

Acupuncture [from Lat. acus, "needle" (noun), and pungere, "prick" (verb)] or in a major Chinese dialect, zhen jiu, is a technique intended to promote health and well-being, that entails the insertion, into the body of its subject, of very thin needles. These needles are applied by trained practitioners into areas described as "acupuncture points".

Chinese Medicine

Acupuncture in China is traced as far back as the 1st millenium BCE, and archeological evidence has been identified with the period of 202 BCE - 220 CE. Its practice spread centuries ago into many parts of Asia; in modern times it is a component of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), and forms of it are also described in the literature of the traditional medicine of India.

Western doctors

In the West, it has adherants (including some medical practitioners), who consider it part of complementary and/or alternative medicine. The traditional theory of acupuncture at least superficially conflicts with Western medical knowledge. The consensus of Western-trained medical doctors and medical-research specialists . . .