Another article about the growing acceptance of acupuncture from the New York Times (requires free registration):

"Acupuncture, long shunned by mainstream medicine but for centuries considered the crown jewel of alternative therapy, is slowly gaining ground in doctors' offices around the country. While some experts still question its effectiveness, studies in recent years - including one at Duke last week - have thrown scientific weight behind its benefits, supporting its usefulness in alleviating conditions from morning sickness to carpal tunnel syndrome.

In the past few years, the number of hospitals offering acupuncture and other alternative therapies has doubled. At the same time, postgraduate training programs in alternative medicine have sprung up at universities around the country, most recently at Harvard and the University of San Francisco."

....

"For other ailments, however, acupuncture has been found to work better than standard medications - and without side effects. It has been widely used for years to ease chronic pain conditions, and studies have repeatedly endorsed its usefulness.

Last week, researchers at Duke showed that it was far more effective for postoperative sickness and vomiting in a group of subjects than Zofran, a widely used antinausea drug. Roughly a quarter of all people who undergo major surgery in the United States experience retching and illness afterward, usually brought on by anesthesia. Antinausea medications offer relief, but because they sometimes cause severe headaches and cramps a number of patients are reluctant to take them, said Dr. Tong J. Gan, an author of the new study, published in the journal Anesthesia & Analgesia."