Action | Practice of dry needling |
Stage | NOIRA |
Comment Period | Ended on 12/30/2015 |
Physical therapy graduates today are highly trained, doctoral level clinicians with a detailed knowledge of human anatomy. PTs do not consider themselves to be acupuncturists, nor do they think their treatments should be used as a substitute for acupuncture treatments. Both physical therapy and acupuncture treatments have been shown to be effective even though the rationale for treatment, as well as the conditions treated, may be different. There will always be risk involved when any sort of invasive treatment (like dry needling) is used, but that is true for both the physical therapist and the acupuncturist. Ultimately, treatments need to be about doing what is best for the patient, not about any one profession vying for control. There is no reason to unnecessarily limit the scope of practice for physical therapists since there is research supporting the use of dry needling as part of their treatment strategy for some patients.