Abbott pioneers acupuncture in the ER

Abbott Northwestern Hospital is reporting success using acupuncture in its emergency room to treat everything from car accident injuries to migraines to kidney stones, and hoping to prove that the traditional Chinese treatment can reduce doctors’ reliance on addictive opioids to manage patients’ pain. The Minneapolis hospital was the first in the nation to staff its ER with an acupuncturist two years ago.It reported this month that pain scores in those who received acupuncture alone dropped by the same amount as those who also received analgesic painkillers.