Doctors honored for neuro-acupuncture 'Miracles'

Doctors honored for neuro-acupuncture 'Miracles'

By Robin Martin
The New Mexican

The room was filled with people suffering from neurological problems.

A celebrated singer had undergone heart and brain surgery and suffered a debilitating stroke. A teenager had cerebral palsy since she was a baby. A Las Cruces attorney was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis two decades ago. A former gymnast was paralyzed in a bicycle accident.

An Albuquerque farrier suffered intense pain after a horse landed on top of him. A baby was born with a severe chromosomal abnormality. A Corrales police officer lost the use of his legs when he was severely injured in line of duty.

The mood should have been somber. Instead, it was upbeat and full of hope.

The group — including many people from out of state — had gathered to honor doctors Jason and Linda Hao, and view a short film about their acupuncture technique that treats neurological disorders.

It was a full house at the Jean Cocteau Cinema on the Friday before Thanksgiving when invited patients and their families, acupuncture students and friends of the Haos met to view a 15-minute film, Modern Day Miracles — The curious art of neuro-acupuncture.

The film was made by Mark Medoff, a professor at New Mexico State University who won a Tony award for his Broadway play, Children of a Lesser God. In 1986, the play was made into a successful movie, and Medoff’s screenplay was nominated for an Academy Award.

Medoff’s short piece on the Haos’ neuro-acupuncture practice highlights 10 of their patients, most of whom were present at the showing. It explains how the doctors treat various neurological disorders by placing needles in their patients’ scalps.

Their technique is different from traditional acupuncture, in which doctors temporarily place a thin needle into a specific point on the body, usually far away from where the pain lies. In neuro-acupuncture, doctors needle areas of the scalp corresponding to parts of the brain damaged by stroke, trauma or disease.

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