I'm not particularly eager to see the training staff using potentially harmful treatments that have been long studied, and have yet to show any substantial benefits (other than placebo...which isn't to be ignored, but probably not worth the costs). If it worked (and worked well), it wouldn't be difficult to show with research. Unless this is part of an elaborate trick on Parsons to make him think he received "legit" acupuncture, but this guy was just one of Morey's buddies from college, and he was flying into town anyway. Though as clever as that might be (and as unlikely), can't say I'd appreciate them promoting pseudoscience. Pseudoscience and sports tend to go hand in hand unfortunately.
Supposedly, it works pretty well for those who actually believe it's going to work. Mind over matter, I guess. I've had it done twice -- for a herniated disk and a frozen shoulder -- and it didn't work at all for me.
That's kind of its problem. Sticking needles in your skin doesn't really help (and there is a risk of doing harm), but talking about the pain, believing that a treatment might/should work, having something applied to the "inflicted" area, etc., probably does have some benefit (and not any of the negatives). As I said, maybe they could just trick him into thinking it would work (and thus, his pain wouldn't seem as bad due to "mind over matter"), but I really doubt that happened. There's a "what the harm" outlook to it (i.e., who cares if it is just a placebo if he feels better), but I don't think you should be promoting treatments that don't actually work (doctors don't knowingly prescribe placebos to people, even though they could benefit people there as well). Better to just figure out why the "placebo" works, and come up with a treatment for that. I don't mean to go on a tangent in a GARM thread, but these kind of things really bother me. Regardless of the situation, hopefully Parsons feels better after this all (with no ill side-effects), and he can get himself back on the court with as little pain as possible.
To some degree, yes. I usually follow summaries from (what I consider reliable) sources such as the following: http://www.sciencebasedmedicine.org...re-is-nothing-more-than-an-elaborate-placebo/ http://www.sciencebasedmedicine.org/acupuncture-revisited/ http://www.sciencebasedmedicine.org/acupuncture-doesnt-work/ As summed up in one article:
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" lang="en"><p>Chandler Parsons said that he didn't feel pain during game but is now in a lot of pain- headed to rehab now.</p>— Jenny Dial Creech (@jennydialcreech) <a href="https://twitter.com/jennydialcreech/statuses/409167181016875008">December 7, 2013</a></blockquote> <script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
I was afraid of this. He has a torn back muscle. I had the same problem. It took me 5 months before I could become active again. It's a dangerous injury, because if you warm up and stretch that muscle, it stops hurting, but you're causing more damage to it as you run around. Eventually, the muscle gets so inflamed that it causes spasms. Chandler needs to be put in a body cast for a couple of months so he stops messing around with it.
You can't just infer a torn muscle from that quote. I trust the Rox training staff to not play him if he has a torn muscle.
Acupuncture works well for pain relief and muscle stiffness. Kaiser medical insurance, which we have at work, prescribes it and they don't pay for pseudoscience. But injuries still need time to heal.
I've been to 2 sport physicians and a spine specialist when I hurt my back. Doesn't make me a doctor, but I got more information that I would want about back injuries. I can say with 99% certainty that Parsons has a torn back muscle. He has the classical symptoms. You can play with a torn back muscle if it's not severe, but it will never heal until you immobilize it. Eventually, it will get to the point where warming up and stretches won't make the pain go away. The training staff let Harden play on his swollen feet too, so don't expect them to stop a player when they really want to play.
Lots of experts in this thread. Not sure you can conclude that a torn muscle is the problem. Disc problems have the same "classic" symptoms. I have dealt with them for years. I don't know a lot about torn back muscles, but almost everyone I know with back problems has some kind of disc issue. Some can be managed, others not so much. Most are chronic. That's the big fear. On another note, RC, it's foolish to claim acupuncture is useless unless you know more about it first hand. It's not hard to find an expert willing to debunk just about any alternative treatment, so the links provided are sort of cherry-picked. Acupuncture is fairly well accepted as a safe effective tool to manage back problems. It does not address the underlying problems if discs are to blame, but it does help inflammation to subside, taking pressure off the affected nerves. I have used it for years and I can tell you that it helps me tremendously. Athletes use it a lot, with tangible benefit, and I doubt any of them would tell you that it's just a placebo.
Not good news. Morey REALLY needs to be a wizard now and get us a solid wing role player through trade.
