Saying acupuncture isn't dry needling is like saying that a vaccine is not an injection just because it is a different word. It doesn't matter whether the origins of acupuncture is different from western medicine. The tools (acupuncture needles) are the same, the goal (pain relief) is the same, and the results (pain relief) are the same. A filiform needle placed in the skin at trigger points (western language) is the same as a filiform needle placed in the skin at an ashi point (eastern language). Just because one developed from an ancient paradigm of treating the body as opposed to a modern viewpoint doesn't change the tools, the therapy and its results. Ancient acupuncturists who discovered that placing needles in tight muscles helped relieve pain is no different than western folks in modern day who are discovering the same thing. The only difference is that acupuncturists are trained in an enormously broader scope of knowledge and Chinese medical theory, with far more needle techniques and protocols than trigger point needling, and far more hours of training. A rose by any other name is still a rose, but let those who made needling their life's study and work do the needling, and let PTs do what they do best. We can refer to each other for our specialtie and be much more synergystic this way, which is ultimately best for the patient.