Acupuncture used for emergecy caesareans in war zones

Women facing the major abdominal surgery of a caesarean section in UK hospitals should spare a thought for those who faced the same prospect in war torn Iraq.

During the war, women were advised to have their babies at home with only high risk problem pregnancies and births making it in to hospital.

Research published today in Acupuncture in Medicine, reveals there were 200 cases of emergency caesarean sections carried out in Baghdad between 2004 and 2006, using acupuncture as a way of overcoming a severe shortage of standard medical supplies.

Dr Lazgeen Zcherky, from the Emergency Hospital, Duhok, Iraq says: “These acupuncture techniques, born out of necessity, have proved useful in overcoming the deficiency of modern drugs and equipment in a war-torn city. But it may also be helpful to consider their use as an adjunct to standard practice in Western hospitals.”