Study Suggests Acupuncture Is an Effective Treatment for Chronic Pain

A longtime resident of Austin, Texas, Dr. Danielo Perez earned his medical degree from SUNY Downstate Medical College in Brooklyn, New York. After completing his degree, he moved to the Austin area to pursue a career in forensic pathology. In addition to his training in Western medicine, Dr. Danielo Perez maintains a strong interest in Eastern medicine, and he is currently taking classes in acupuncture. 

A Chinese medical tradition dating back thousands of years, acupuncture relies upon stimulating points in the body with a needle to correct energetic imbalances, thereby relieving pain and speeding healing. Though acupuncture, like much Chinese medicine, has been viewed with skepticism in the West over the past several hundred years, recent research has indicated that Chinese medicine, and especially acupuncture, can be effective for treating certain conditions.

Now, yet another study indicates that acupuncture can be effective as part of a comprehensive health care plan. In a paper published in The Journal of Pain in May 2018, a team of researchers reported on a meta-study that suggests acupuncture not only serves as an effective treatment for chronic pain, but that its effects last over time. Additionally, the paper’s authors concluded acupuncture's beneficial effects could not be attributed to the placebo effect.

The study’s findings are especially exciting considering the ongoing opioid epidemic in America. Experts suggest that using acupuncture as an alternative to pharmaceutical drugs for chronic pain conditions could help alleviate the crisis.

What to Expect During an Acupuncture Procedure

As a forensic pathologist, Danielo Perez of Austin, Texas, holds years of experience completing autopsies, providing forensic consulting, and reviewing individual cases. Austin's Danielo Perez also plans to open an integrative practice in the future. To support this goal, he is currently undergoing training to become a herbalist and acupuncturist.

An ancient practice, acupuncture utilizes needles to stimulate nerves and boost natural painkillers in the body. The treatment, which stems from traditional Chinese medicine, is often used to treat pain or stress and boost overall wellness. Today, acupuncturists typically incorporate both eastern and western influences into their practices.

Although acupuncture treatments can differ based on the person performing them, the procedure itself typically follows a common routine. During the treatment, the acupuncturist will instruct the patient to lay on a padded table, then insert approximately five to twenty small needles into strategic points on the body. Heat or electrical impulses may then be applied for further stimulation. Finally, after a ten to twenty minute waiting period, the needles will be removed.

Determining Cause of Death When Trauma is Not Present

A resident of Austin, Texas, Danielo Perez held duties as a forensic pathologist and performed autopsies at the scenes of deaths that were unnatural, unexplained, and unattended. Many of the cases Danielo Perez handled in Austin involved situations where there was no apparent trauma and the cause of death needed to be forensically deduced. 

One of the core questions of the forensic pathologist is whether the death was natural or unnatural. This is particularly difficult in situations where the deceased has a pre-existing condition or illness, such as asthma or pneumonia that could logically be linked to the death. 

Stress-related deaths are particularly difficult to pin down conclusively, as they often relate to existing health conditions such as heart disease. Different types of stress, from family emergencies to overwork, can compound and aggravate these health issues.

A comprehensive investigation in which the cause of death is unclear extends beyond postmortem exam and assessment of medical history and includes information gleaned from friends, relatives, and colleagues. In this way, such cases regularly span disciplines and require coordinated efforts between several experts.

The Attunement Process in Mastering Reiki

Based in Austin, Texas, Dr. Danielo Perez has a background in forensic pathology and has attended death scenes and testified in legal settings. Since his teen years, Austin professional Dr. Danielo Perez has had a passion for Eastern philosophy and martial arts, and he has an abiding interest in energy work, which focuses on the mind-body continuum. 

There are numerous disciplines of energy work, including reiki, chakra healing, acupuncture/acupressure, and bionenergy. A recent MindBodyGreen article presented the perspective of a reiki practitioner, who describes the practice as a traditional Japanese way of enhancing clarity and spiritual balance, while easing mental trauma. 

The “ki” in reiki refers to a nonphysical energy that is believed to flow through all living things, while “rei" is a form of higher intelligence that spans both the living and nonliving. The practice is unique in its learning system, through which a Reiki master performs an attunement process that opens heart, palm, and heart chakras. This creates a connection between teacher and student and ultimately results in a transfer of energy that one cannot lose. 

The training process in reiki is not easy or simple, as it involves three to four distinct levels of learning toward becoming a master. The first level focuses on opening the practitioner’s physical energy channels in a way that allows a connection with “universal life force energy.” The second level explores sacred symbols and associated healing frequencies, which include emotional wellbeing, power, and balance. Another emphasis is on time transcendence, which enables the healing of emotional and physical traumas that occurred at any point in life, including as a young child.

American Academy of Forensic Sciences’ Young Forensic Scientists Forum

A forensic pathologist based in Austin, Texas, Danielo Perez has experience in conducting forensic autopsies, which includes analyzing toxicological findings and evaluating radiographs and blood tests. Actively involved in his professional community, Danielo Perez of Austin is a member of organizations such as the American Academy of Forensic Sciences (AAFS). 

Dedicated to advancing the field of forensic science and its applications in the legal system, the AAFS is a professional membership organization comprising 7,000 members from 70 countries worldwide. To promote education and accuracy in the forensic sciences, the AAFS operates the Young Forensic Scientists Forum (YFSF), which invites young people to network and form relationships within the forensic science community. Through meetings and an annual conference, the YFSF offers numerous resources for emerging forensic scientists to learn more about educational requirements for a career in forensic science, as well as to educate themselves on specific branches of forensic science, among them crime scene processing, forensic entomology, forensic computer analysis, fingerprints, and DNA.

ASCPedia - An Image Library for Pathologists

An experienced forensic pathologist based in Austin, Texas, Dr. Danielo Perez previously served as an assistant medical examiner with the Cook County Medical Examiner’s Office in Chicago. Over the course of his career, Dr. Danielo Perez has worked to stay up-to-date in his field through various professional memberships. The Austin resident currently maintains affiliations with several organizations, including the American Society for Clinical Pathology (ASCP). 

Dedicated to advancing pathology and laboratory medicine around the globe, ASCP offers a variety of professional development programs and resources. In addition to online courses, live events, books, and journals, ASCP members can advance their knowledge and skills through learning resources such as ASCPedia. 

Built with the help of pathologists and laboratory professionals, the ASCPedia online reference library features thousands of high-resolution digital images converted from glass laboratory slides. The digital slide library facilitates remote collaboration, virtual training, and information sharing across all disciplines in anatomic and clinical pathology. The library is a great tool for professionals looking for specific diagnosis entry as well as students studying for an exam. 

ASCP members can peruse the library’s contents using a specific search term or a discipline category. Members can also improve ASCPedia by submitting their own digitized slide images of interesting or rare pathologies. For more information, visit www.ascp.org.

NAME Accreditation

An experienced forensic professional with a background in pathology, Dr. Danielo Perez resides in Austin, Texas. He has performed autopsies and offered expert witness testimony. In addition, Dr. Danielo Perez is a member of a number of professional organizations, including the National Association of Medical Examiners (NAME).

One of the activities of NAME has been the creation of accreditation standards that can be applied to US systems and offices that engage in the medicolegal investigation of death. The process involves peer review, and it seeks to improve the performance of systems and offices by foregrounding constructive criticism and objective evaluation. Notably, systems and offices (rather than individuals) undergo the process and ultimately receive accreditation. 

According to policies adopted in January 2017, NAME accreditation lasts for four years, after which the offices or systems concerned can pursue re-accreditation. The population that a given office serves determines its inspection and accreditation fee structure.