TRADITIONAL
AND COMPLEMENTARY MEDICINE
Traditional
and complementary medicine, based on the beliefs and theories of
different cultures, are all of the knowledge, skills and practices
used for the maintenance of health, such as protection from physical
and mental illnesses, diagnosing and treating diseases.
It is a method used complementary to traditional medicine for
providing balance between energy and autonomic and hormonal system,
strengthening immune system and has scientific basis. Traditional and
complementary medicine methods are important especially for
prevention from and treatment of chronic diseases and maintanance of
health.
Inverventions
can be applied in centers and units authorised by ministry of health
by trained and certified physicians and also by dentists in dental
diseaes. Health personnel with a basic training can assist certified
physicians during applications in centers and units. In our center
the physician takes anamnesis and makes physical examination of the
patient, than patient is evaluated by results of required tests and
examinations. After these procedures the appropriate traditional and
complementary medicine method for the patient is chosen and applied.
The rooms in our center are created hygienic, modern and match
criterions identified by ministry of health.
Treatments
used as traditional and complementary medicine;
Acupuncture
Hirudotherapy
Mesotherapy
Hypnosis
Cupping
Therapy
Phytotherapy
Reflexology
Homeopathy
Osteopathy
Ozone
Application
Apitherapy
Prolotherapy
Application
of Larva
Music
therapy
Acupuncture,
mesotherapy, ozone application, prolotherapy, cupping therapy and
music therapy are applied in Ankara Bilkent City Hospital Traditional
and Complementary Medicine Center.
Acupuncture
It
is a treatment method applied by immersing gold, silver and steel
needles to certain points in the body in order to prevent or treat
diseases for 5000 years. Today the World Health Organization has
accepted acupuncture as a reliable treatment method. It is also
applied by certified physicians in our country.
Acupression,
moksa, laser and electrical stimulation can be applied to the points
other than needles.
The
stimuli, which begin with the immersion of the acupuncture needle
into the acupuncture point, reach the central nervous system and
respond with the release of various neurotransmitters.It
has analgesic, sedative, immune strengthening, homeostatic and
psychological effects. It also has the effect of reducing appetite
and regulating metabolism. The points are 70-80% similar to the
trigger points. Although acupuncture can be applied to the ear and
body regions, needle sizes vary according to the region to be
applied. The length of the needles is between 0.5 and 8 cm. Their
thickness varies between 0.16 and 0.5 mm. Needles are usually
disposable.
It
contributes to the treatment of the origin of many diseases. It’s
indicated in the treatment of musculoskeletal system pain,
neurological diseases (migraine, facial paralysis), psychiatric
diseases (depression, insomnia, anxiety disorder) hormonal disorders
(infertility, goiter, diabetes), gastrointestinal diseases
(constipation, diarrhea, colitis, gastritis), respiratory diseases
(pharyngitis, rhinitis, sinusitis, bronchitis), obesity, etc.
The
patient is positioned according to the area to be applied in
acupuncture application (lying
on face, lying on back, sitting).
After the area is disinfected with alcohol, the needle is immersed in
a sterile way. Bleeding, pain, bruising, numbness and increased
complaints may be observed in the applied area as side effect.
Ozone
Therapy
Ozone
is the three atom (O3)
form of the Oxygen (O2)
molecule, which is necessary for us in every moment of our lives to
sustain our life. Ozone, which is formed as a result of various
natural phenomena from airborne oxygen in nature, can be produced
with the help of special devices for medical use. Since the oxygen
concentration in atmospheric air is variable, medical ozone is
produced from pure medical oxygen. Ozone was first found and used by
the Germans 40 years ago in medical treatment.
Ozone
stimulates the production of white blood cells, increases the
elasticity of red blood cells, is antineoplastic, oxidizes arterial
plaques, increases the oxygen capacity of the blood and is
antioxidant.
It
is used in arterial circulatory disorders, immune deficiency, viral
diseases (especially hepatitis C), inflammatory diseases (rheumatic
diseases), skin diseases (decubitus ulcers, wounds, gangrene, burns,
acne) and joint degeneration.
It
is contraindicated in pregnant women, those with
glucose-6-phosphate-dehydrogenase deficiency (favism), severe anemia,
severe myasthenia and ozone allergy.
Some
blood is taken into the ozone tube by entering the patient's vein
with a sterile needle. Then the blood is mixed with a certain amount
of ozone gas according to the disease. Ozone blood mixture is given
to the patient from the vein in a closed and sterile environment.
This is called "Major Ozone" application.
2-4
cc blood is taken from the patient's vein and mixed with pure medical
ozone and injected to the patient intramuscularly. This is called
"Minor Ozone" application. In addition, local applications
(intrarectal, intraarticular, on wounds) can be done. In diabetic
foot wounds, ozone can be applied by bagging.
Prolotherapy
Prolotherapy
is an injection method that consists of the words "proliferation"
and "therapy" in Latin, which provides regeneration,
strengthens and increases the functionality of damaged, worn,
weakened ligaments and tendons. Prolotherapy has been practiced in
the USA since the 1930s.
Prolotherapy
is the treatment method based on natural healing with the injection
of irritant and proliferative substances into painful and injured
joints, tendons, ligaments, enthesis areas and the resulting
physiological inflammation. Inflammations caused by microorganisms
result in infection and must be treated with antibiotherapy.
Inflammation created by prolotherapy is the sterile and in a limited
area, but it is the main logic of treatment.
Prolotherapy
is used effectively and safely in disc lesions seen in the spine for
various reasons, in strain in tissues such as ligaments, tendons and
muscles, especially in the joints of the elbow, hand, knee and foot
and painful musculoskeletal diseases due to osteoarthritis. The main
diseases are mechanical pain in the low back, back and neck, disc
lesions (herniation), sports injuries, osteoarthritis, meniscus
lesions in the knee, plantar fasciitis in the foot, ankle sprain,
lateral or medial epicondylitis in the elbow, tendinopathy, ligament
and tendon strain.
After
the person is evaluated, anti-inflammatory drugs should be
discontinued if they are using it. Anticoagulants should be continued
or discontinued by the doctor's control. Since the process is
irritant and painful, lidocaine is added to the dextrose solution
used.
Although
the patient's pain is expected to increase after treatment, drugs
containing paracetamol should be used as pain reliever, and NSAIDs or
steroids should not be used. The applied area s
hould
not be forced and the massage should be applied with warm water if
necessary.
Cupping
therapy
The
cupping therapy, which is thought to have a 5000 year history, was
frequently applied in Islamic and the Ottoman period. Cupping therapy
is a method applied on the skin by means of the vacuum effect created
with cups. While dry cupping application is based on stimulating the
skin by vacuuming, wet
mug therapy involves sucking some blood through epidermal incisions
into the skin with a dry surgical blade. The negative pressure
created by the application of the cupping improves microcirculation
by expanding the local blood vessels, normalises the patient's
functional status by accelerating healing of capillary endothelial
cells and granulation and angiogenesis in the related area. Besides
local theory, there are gate control theory, neural theory,
hematological and immune system theories. Its efficacy has been
determined in musculoskeletal diseases (myofascial pain,
fibromyalgia, osteoarthritis, spondylosis),
hematological
diseases (increased hemoglobin levels, iron overload), neurological
diseases (migraine), cardiovascular diseases (hypertension),
autoimmune diseases (rheumatoid arthritis), dermatological diseases
(urticaria), gastrointestinal diseases (irritable bowel syndrome,
constipation), respiratory system diseases (asthma) and some
psychiatric diseases (depression, as a sedative in schizophrenia,
insomnia). The sizes of the cups vary according to the size of the
application area and each cup is disposable. Skin traces and bruises
appear as a side effect after cupping.
In
the cupping application, first anatomically suitable areas are
selected. A strict sterilization is done initially. The skin is
vacuumed, scratches are discarded, the skin is vacuumed again, and
finally a strict sterilization is applied again.
Phytotherapy
Medicinal
plants have been used by folk medicine practitioners for centuries
and date back to 5000 years. They are widely used in many European
countries. It is a treatment method used in the treatment or
prevention of diseases with traditional herbal medicinal products and
herbal medicines according to certain quality, safety and efficacy
standards. Phytotherapeutic products are available in tablet,
capsule, cream and tea forms. Due to the side effects of synthetic
drugs, the trend towards phytotherapy products is increasing all over
the world. Many conventional pharmaceuticals have been produced from
plants, by pharmaceutical companies examining plants
pharmacologically. Examples include aspirin (willow bark), morphine
(opium flower), quinine (cinchona bark), and digoxin (foxglove).
During
the licensing process of phytotherapy products, they can be applied
within the indications determined by taking the opinion of the
scientific commission. Phytotherapeutic products can be used in
immune system diseases, locomotor system diseases, upper respiratory
tract diseases, urogenital system diseases, regulation of
gastrointestinal functions, hormonal dysfunctions.
Before
use, the patient's blood values should be carefully examined.
The patient should be warned, as it does not have a rapid effect like
a medical drug and has a long half-life.
Mesotherapy
French
Dr. Michel Pistor named the intradermal injections he made with local
anesthetic as mesotherapy in 1952. It is the intradermal injection
application of herbal or pharmacological drugs aiming the
improvement of organ pathologies originating from mesoderm, with
regional small doses, special needles and special techniques.The
same drugs used orally are applied in mesotherapy in small amounts.
It is preferred that the drugs themselves be effective, other than
the metabolites of the liver. The content of the solution may vary
depending on the treatment area, the patient and the disease, and is
individual. The effect provided by the injection of the needle and
the pharmacodynamic effect of the drugs constitute the analgesic and
immune response. Mesotherapy is the best way to deliver the drug to
the target organ, which has a pathology.
The
drug, reaching the capillaries in the middle layer of the skin,
quickly shows its effect. Locomotor system, vascular system,
neurovegetative system and immune system pathologies are treated by
adding the relevant drug.
Although there are many indications, the main indication is pain. In
addition, it can be used in sports injuries (tendon, muscle and
connective tissue), dermatological diseases (baldness, acne,
cellulite), vascular system pathologies (varicose veins, arteritis)
and locomotor system pathologies.
It
is not recommended for patients with end-stage heart failure, kidney
failure, drug allergy, anticoagulant (coumadin) use and pregnant
women.