Doctors testing acupuncture as pain treatment on medical flights

Sgt. 1st Class Joshua Friedbauer receives acupuncture just prior to his flight to the States. Friedbauer, of the Army National Guard's 20th Special Forces Group, is one of the first participants in a study examining whether acupuncture can effectively be used in air evacuation flights. Seth Robbins/Stars and Stripes.

For the first time, doctors are testing acupuncture to treat injured troops in transit from Ramstein to the States.

The servicemembers are part of a study, looking at whether battlefield acupuncture — a procedure that involves placing tiny needles into troops’ ears — can be effectively used to control pain during an air evacuation.

More at Stars & Stripes.