After holding a professional license for over 19 years  & dedicating my focus to clinicaly practing acupuncture, I will emphasize that any act  or procedure involving an acupuncture needle to perforate the skin is a surgical procedure, using a surgical implement. This is Virginia Law. Dry needle is just a term used.  Dry needling is an internal procedure using acupuncture needles called thus by PTs. The public is threatened PTs'  their lack of training involving knowledge of all precise acupuncture point locations, understanding of needle depth, insertion of needle direction and known contraindications of all acupuncture points used in relationship to anatomy and pathologies presented in each person when a PT attempts to do acupuncture and calls it dry needling. PT's are requesting to use acupuncture needles to perforate the skin over a large protion of the neck and lungs. This is a safety threat to the public. Many more cases of pneumothorax are reported by PT's. PT's are not educated nor skilled at using surgical implements such as the acupuncture needle.  PTs are calling this surgical procedure something else than what it really is. This confusion and manipulation of terms leaves a patient only partially informed that they are actually seeking a surgical procedure from an unqualified therapist. The term dry needle is confusing and misleading to the patient and their safety by not calling this acupuncture. Therefore acupuncture should not be called dry needle/dry needling by PTs.  Dry needle/dry needling is the same as acupuncture. This is a surgical procedure, this is internal mediciine.  It falls out of the scope of practice for Physical Therapists. And the effects of "dry needling" are short lived as this is not a comprehensive practice style. The act of thrusting acupuncture needles into bundled muscle fibers called trigger points is painful  and very dangerous to the patient. An incredible amount of knowledge is necessary to not hurt a patient around the delicate anatomy of the lungs and neck. Dry needling violates the code of ethics for acupuncture which states that "the practice of acupuncture does not include the use of Physical therapy techniques- Scope of Acupuncture:54.1-2900/VA.