Report on Disaster Medical Operations with Acupuncture/Massage Therapy after the Great East Japan Earthquake

• Main Authors: Shin Takayama, Tetsuharu Kamiya, Masashi Watanabe, Atsushi Hirano, Ayane Matsuda, Yasutake Monma, Takehiro Numata, Hiroko Kusuyama, Nobuo Yaegashi
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: SAGE Publishing 2012-01-01
• Series: Infectious Diseases
• Online Access: https://doi.org/10.4137/IMI.S9541

The Great East Japan Earthquake inflicted immense damage over a wide area of eastern Japan with the consequent tsunami. Department of Traditional Asian Medicine, Tohoku University, started providing medical assistance to the disaster-stricken regions mainly employing traditional Asian therapies. We visited seven evacuation centers in Miyagi and Fukushima Prefecture and provided acupuncture/massage therapy. While massage therapy was performed manually, filiform needles and press tack needles were used to administer acupuncture. In total, 553 people were treated (mean age, 54.0 years; 206 men, 347 women). Assessment by interview showed that the most common complaint was shoulder/back stiffness. The rate of therapy satisfaction was 92.3%. Many people answered that they experienced not only physical but also psychological relief. At the time of the disaster, acupuncture/massage therapy, which has both mental and physical soothing effects, may be a therapeutic approach that can be effectively used in combination with Western medical practices.