There are many different styles of Acupuncture that are practiced today. While Acupuncture originated in China approximately 3,000 years ago, the practice spread over the Asian continent and developed its own regional adaptations. Each of these Acupuncture styles differs in their theory and practice. While they mostly share the same fundamentals of Oriental Medicine, their interpretation of classical texts, such as the Yellow Emperor’s Classic of Internal Medicine (Huang Di Nei Jing), can alter their diagnosis and treatment techniques.

Several modern styles of acupuncture have been developed, incorporating Western medical knowledge, to form hybrid systems of acupuncture. These modern systems of Acupuncture commonly focus on biomedical explanations of how acupuncture works and distill many of the more esoteric aspects of practice.

While all of the classical styles of acupuncture are in agreement on the pathways of the Acupuncture meridians, the exact location of the Acupuncture points does vary. Each style may utilize the acupuncture points with different therapeutic goals in mind, and include a variety of extra points that many not exist in other styles of Acupuncture. Styles can also vary in the needle size, insertion depth and needling technique. Summaries of each major style and high-lights of their differences are shown below.

Chinese Acupuncture
Chinese Acupuncture is one of several treatment modalities within Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM). In the 1950’s with the rise of Communism, Chairman Mao instituted the formulized development of Traditional Chinese Medicine from the knowledge of the remaining traditional doctors in China. TCM was modernized into a curriculum which included western medicine and was integrated into the hospital care system. This style of acupuncture is taught in most US Acupuncture schools and has a large amount of research from China supporting its methodology. It is the most common form of Acupuncture practiced today.

Some acupuncturists identify more with Classical Chinese Medicine (CCM) verse Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), the former is based more on interpretation of classical Chinese medical texts over modern research. The creation of TCM removed many of the more esoteric concepts of Chinese Medicine to focus on methods that could more easily be taught in an institutional settings verse the traditional method of long-term apprenticeships.

Chinese style acupuncture utilizes thicker acupuncture needles compared to other styles, and tends to focus on the "de qi", or getting Qi, sensation to achieve a clinic result. Some patients may find Chinese style more aggressive in treatment then other styles of acupuncture.