Most likely to be under-treated were: veterans who were male or under the age of 25, those who live in rural areas and those who got their diagnoses at primary-care clinics and needed referrals to mental health programs. Most diagnosed veterans attended at least one mental-health care session, but both personal & systemic factors created barriers to their continuing in treatment.
Meanwhile, the military is still making some inroads into the U.S. acceptance of acupuncture as a treatment for PTSD. The military has run several studies in the use of acupuncture for alleviating PTSD, including one in New Mexico that involved 84 participants, supported by the National Institutes of Health and the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine.
The U.S. Air Force is developing a system called "battlefield acupuncture" to prevent PTSD and treat battlefield injuries on site with acupuncture. (Guidepoints, January 2009) Acupuncture services are offically available at some VA hospitals (Seattle, Fort Bliss, TX & Cinncinati and a Naval hospital in San Diego), and there are continuing studies being conducted on its use. Acupuncture is also offered for free or at low cost to veterans at sites all over the country, including here in St. Petersburg by AWB affiliates. (Thursday nights @ 7.30pm, at Unity of St. Petersburg, 6168 1st Ave N, St. Petersburg, FL 33710)
For a list of veterans' clinics in the U.S., see:
http://acuwithoutborders.org/msrpclinics.php
Other sources on military research into the use of acupuncture:
http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/news/fullstory_95333.html
http://www.vfw.org/index.cfm?fa=news.magDtl&dtl=3&mid=3832
http://www.usatoday.com/news/health/2008-10-07-holistic_N.htm
http://www.moaa.org/momStory.aspx?pagename=pubs_mom_070601_ptsd
1 comment:
Very interesting, informative and well written, thanks Chris.
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