Acupuncture Research Today is a free monthly online journal that collates and summarizes the latest research about Acupuncture, including details on alternative medicine, uses, benefits, treatment, chinese medicine.

The Inflammatory Reflex and the Role of Complementary and Alternative Medical Therapies.

Oke SL, Tracey KJ

Director's Office, Feinstein Institute for Medical Research, Manhasset, New York, United States.

The body's first defense against invading pathogens or tissue injury is the innate immune system. Since excessive immune responses can be damaging, anti-inflammatory mechanisms function to control the pro-inflammatory response and prevent injury. The cholinergic anti-inflammatory pathway is a neural mechanism that suppresses the innate inflammatory response. Knowledge concerning innervation of the immune system offers a unique opportunity to explore previously unrecognized or under recognized techniques to treat disease. It also enables consideration of the neurological basis of complementary and alternative medical therapies, such as meditation and acupuncture. This evolving area of research has implications for the pathogenesis of chronic inflammatory conditions including inflammatory bowel disease, rheumatoid arthritis, type 2 diabetes, and other conditions of excessive cytokine release.

Published 1 October 2007 in Ann N Y Acad Sci.
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