Alternative Treatment for Rod-Cone Dystrophy with Microacupuncture

Rod-Cone dystrophy (dystrophy is a general term for tissue degeneration) and Cone-Rod dystrophy are similar vision diseases. The difference is that with Rod-Cone dystrophy the rods are affected first, then the cones. With Cone-Rod dystrophy the cones are affected first. The degeneration will ultimately affect the whole eye. Cones are the photoreceptor cells that are most concentrated in the center of the retina and as you move to the peripheral there are less and less cones. Rods are most concentrated in the peripheral and as you move toward the center of the retina they become less and less concentrated. Rod-Cone and Cone-Rod are both hereditary degenerative diseases related to Retinitis Pigmentosa and Stargardt’s disease. All of these degenerative eye diseases are treatable by microacupunture for vision, a form of acupuncture but not related to traditional acupuncture.

In Rod-Cone dystrophy, since the rods are affected first, the initial symptom is night blindness. The rods are responsible for seeing in the dark, detecting motion, and providing peripheral vision. The last vision to leave is the central vision, which is responsible for seeing details. Also rods are not able to distinguish color, only shades of gray.

Cone-Rod dystrophy is characterized by loss of central vision first since the cones are concentrated in the center of the eye. Cones are the photoreceptor cells in the eye’s retina that are responsible for color vision and visual acuity in bright light. They detect different wavelengths of light which allows for seeing the full range of colors. Cones are concentrated in the fovea, the central part of the retina and are crucial for seeing fine details. The macula, which is in the center of the fovea is where the cones are most concentrated, and is the point on the eye we look out from.

Like Retinitis Pigmentosa and Stargardt’s diseases treating these degenerative diseases with acupuncture and alternative medicine can help repair some of the damage caused by the disease, and help to stabilize the vision disorder. Using a specialized form of acupuncture called microacupuncture we can do multiple treatments each day to get the maximum benefit in a short period of time. Basically we are working to keep the blood deep within the tissue for the whole day. Since most acupuncture only works for a short time (although can give long term benefits) doing the microacupuncture treatments every couple of hours keeps the blood circulating in the deep tissue of the eye, optic nerve and brain, removing old dead cells and allowing for new cells to grow. Most patients will receive 4 to 5 treatments a day at regular intervals to allow for an increase in blood flow to the retina. This will help the damage to the eye to heal. Some of the damage may be permanent if the situation has endured for a long time, but there is always room for improved vision.

Other alternative therapies for degenerative eye diseases such as Rod-Cone and Cone-Rod dystrophy exist such as red light therapy, Chinese herbal medicines and supplements. One of the most important factors to consider for helping to stabilize the diseases, although will not likely restore vision like thed microacupuncture will, is to take antioxidants. This helps to slow down the destruction of tissue in the back of the eye and is helpful for all diseases, expecially retinitis pigmentosa and glaucoma. N-acetyl cysteine helps to activate glutathione, the master antioxidant.