Chinese medical techniques have had long history of use

For more than 2,000 years, Dr. Sae Eun Lee says, people have been practicing some form of Chinese medicine with success.

“People say it doesn’t work,” Lee says. “If that were true, how did it last more than 2,000 years? People don’t believe what they can’t see.”

Often called Chinese medicine — Lee says the preferred term is Eastern or Oriental medicine — Lee says the techniques are effective to treat medical problems from anxiety to chronic pain, despite skepticism and a lack of scientific evidence in the West.

“Just because you can’t explain in a scientific way, doesn’t mean it doesn’t work,” he says. “There are many theories (in science) that aren’t 100 percent proven.”

As a doctor of Oriental medicine in Nevada, he is able to practice various methods. One of the most common is acupuncture, which uses needles along various points of the body to alleviate certain ailments.

Lee says the body is governed by 14 meridians, which are sections of the body that promote energy flow. In each section, there are various pressure points to designate functions. A needle is used on those points to help with health problems.

“I would say 70 percent of people come in for pain,” Lee says. “They have an achy lower back problem or a pinched nerve. They might have shoulder pain.”

Other patients come to Lee’s Oriental Medical Clinic to reduce stress and anxiety or combat insomnia.

Dr. Huiwen Zhang has operated Legacy Oriental Medical Center since 1995 offering acupuncture.

She says other problems people come in for include digestive problems, chronic sinus issues, to stop smoking, weight loss, arthritis, and respiratory conditions such as asthma.

“We treat female problems, sports injury and auto injuries,” she adds.

Depending on the problem, clients come for stages of treatment.

“For some conditions, people come in three times per week,” Zhang says. “Other conditions, they might come in once a week.”

Lee says many people who come to his facility have already tried Western medicine.

“But they get to a point where it’s not really helping anymore,” Lee says, noting patients no longer want to be on chemicals and want to give a new approach a try. “So we gradually withdraw them. You can’t stop it right away, especially if your body has been on the chemicals for so long.”

While Lee often uses herbs and acupuncture to get people off medications, Zhang says she usually uses the treatments in conjunction with medications.

“I think the best way, the most effective way, is a combination,” she says.

Zhang says in China, hospitals use acupuncture alongside other forms of medical treatment.

Both centers also use a technique called cupping, in which a glass cup is applied to the skin and a vacuum creates suction causing the pores to open up and to stimulate blood flow.

They also use Tuina, which uses different hand techniques to massage muscles and tendons.

For some chronic problems such as constant bronchitis, these techniques aren’t enough.

In these cases, Lee will still use acupuncture but will add herbal medicine to the mix.

“This is medicated, plants and seeds,” he says. “We are talking about roots, flowers and minerals. Sometimes, it’s even deer antler.”

It’s not just one herb. A prescription might include 10 to 14 ingredients from remedies that have been tried since the founding of Eastern medicine.

“We don’t know how these came to be,” he says. “Someone smart 2,000 years ago was mixing different herbs to get rid of problems whether it was vomiting or something else.”

In Lee’s office, he has books and resource materials to help him develop the right treatment for health problems.

Lee says it wasn’t too long ago people didn’t trust Eastern medicine.

“But now, more people are interested in it,” he adds.

He says with an increase in global relations during the 1970s, the United States began to learn a little about Eastern medicine.

From there, states began passing laws to allow people to practice acupuncture.

By law, the Nevada Board of Oriental Medicine oversees such medical practices in the state.

The board consists of five practitioners who have the ability to determine which accredited program for Oriental medicine can be accepted. It also issues licenses for those who want to practice Oriental medicine.

In Nevada, getting licensed by the Nevada Board of Oriental Medicine means being able to practice both acupuncture and herbal medicine.

“In California, for example, you can get licensed for acupuncture, but not herbal medicine,” Lee says.

In order to be licensed, practitioners must have an accredited degree, go through a lengthy application process and pass a board-certified test that includes basic chemistry, biology and physiology along with knowledge of herbal medicine and acupuncture.

“It’s a pretty rigorous two- or three-day test,” Zhang says.

Lee adds that in the licensing process, Nevada acknowledges only a few select schools for Oriental medicine across the country. In 2012, the first school of acupuncture and Oriental medicine, Wongu University of Oriental Medicine, opened in Nevada.

Lee says requiring stricter guidelines is good for the industry and promotes accountability.

There are about 40 practitioners in Las Vegas who are currently licensed.

Lee was licensed in Nevada as a doctor of Oriental medicine in 1981. He also has a license in California, New York and South Korea, where he received his medical degree. He has been practicing in Las Vegas for 32 years and even was a member of the Nevada Board of Oriental Medicine.

Though he has seen states make progress, Lee says there are many things he’d like to see.

“We need a national standard,” he says. “Something that would apply in every state.”

Zhang — a graduate from Guangzhou University of Chinese Medicine in China who has been licensed in Nevada since 1995 — says in general there just needs to be more education about what Eastern medicine is to combat many misconceptions.

Lee adds that most insurances don’t acknowledge Eastern medicine, which means people have to pay out of pocket.

“Which is also why I think we need a national standard,” he says. “With more accountability, I think insurance companies will treat us differently.”

Contact reporter Michael Lyle at mlyle@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-5201. Follow @mjlyle on Twitter.