Gold bead implants are injected at acupuncture sites to relieve pain from hip dysplasia.
Hip dysplasia is a debilitating, incurable condition that typically affects large dogs, beginning in young adulthood. The aim of treatment for hip dysplasia is to reduce inflammation and relieve pain. One alternative treatment is a form of acupuncture called gold bead implantation. Doctors who perform this procedure claim a high rate of effectiveness; critics express concern over whether the presence of gold beads in the body is safe.
Hip Dysplasia
Signs of hip dysplasia in a dog include decreased tolerance for exercise, unwillingness to jump up (onto furniture, for example) or to run, bunny-hopping, progressive lameness, and wasting of muscle mass in the hindquarters. Your dog may exhibit signs of pain, such as threatening or even snapping when you touch the hips, lower back, or legs. Your dog may stop walking altogether, resorting to crawling rather than bearing weight on the painful hips.
Acupuncture
Acupuncture involves the insertion of thin needles at specific sites on the body that correspond to painful areas. Some veterinarians are proponents of permanent acupuncture--the placement of tiny pieces of gold wire or beads to keep the acupuncture sites stimulated and ostensibly control chronic joint diseases, including hip dysplasia.
Gold Beads
Having found that hip dysplasia responded to periodic acupuncture treatments, veterinarians began experimenting with permanent acupuncture in the 1970s. After much free-of-charge trial and error with dogs with hip dysplasia whose owners were willing to try something new to ease their pets' pain, the pioneers of this procedure arrived at a set number of gold beads to be placed at very specific acupuncture points for maximum efficacy. Gold in small amounts is an age-old natural remedy for joint disease.
Implantation
A veterinary acupuncturist will use a large-bore needle to insert two or three 1 mm gold beads under the skin, between muscles at the specific acupuncture site. Studies published in the journal "Acta Veterinaria Scandinavica" and discussed on the Medical Acupuncture webpage have found that dogs treated with gold beads saw improvement within a few weeks and reported that after two years of follow-up, the dogs in the study continued to experience relief and improved function. Gold bead implantation does not cure hip dysplasia; it simply eases pain and reduces inflammation around the ailing joints.
Doubts About Safety
Some critics, notably Dr. Narda Robinson of Colorado State University, decry gold implantation as not just quackery but malpractice. Robinson cites studies published in the journals "Chest," "Medical Acupuncture," "Northeast Journal of Medicine," "Archives of Family Medicine," and others. The main risks with permanent acupuncture of any kind are infection if the implants are not sterile and the possibility that the implants may migrate to other areas of the body and cause new problems.
