CAIRO — In a modest clinic inside a Cairo medical center, Egyptian physiotherapist and acupuncturist Abir El-Naggar methodically arranges her acupuncture needles and cupping tools.

With more than 20 years of experience, she is both a practitioner and a witness to the growing influence of traditional Chinese medicine, or TCM, in Egypt.

"TCM sees the human as body, soul, and spirit together — one complete unit," she said. "With the right points and properly placed needles, you help the body heal itself, without chemicals." It was this philosophy that initially attracted her to the field more than two decades ago.

People are drawn to TCM because it treats the underlying cause of illness rather than just the symptoms, she said. "Many patients tell me, 'I finally feel the energy flowing in my body.' That moment is priceless."

A physiotherapy graduate from Cairo University, El-Naggar's journey into TCM began in 2001 and ultimately took her to Denmark. There, she completed a three-year acupuncture program at a private college in Copenhagen, which included a month of study at Beijing University of Chinese Medicine. She later earned her PhD from China's Nanjing University of Chinese Medicine.

In her practice, she treats a wide range of conditions, including chronic back and neck pain, migraines, stress-related issues, and neurological disorders like spasticity in children, areas where, she says, acupuncture often yields significant improvements.

One of her patients, Sultan Mansour, a football coach, said acupuncture was the only treatment that alleviated his years of post-surgery meniscus pain, after physiotherapy provided only limited relief. A meniscus tear is a common cartilage injury of the knee.

Mansour said his sessions with El-Naggar "made a real difference, and I experienced significant improvement".

After experiencing the effectiveness of Chinese medicine, he began recommending acupuncture to fellow coaches, players, neighbors, and friends dealing with sports injuries, chronic pain, and other ailments.

"Anyone who asks me, I tell them: try Chinese medicine, it can truly make a difference," he said.

Mansour said he has seen a significant improvement in more complex cases he referred to El-Naggar, such as partial paralysis and stroke patients. He believes acupuncture will become an increasingly vital therapeutic tool.

For Nemat Galal, a housewife, acupuncture proved its worth when it alleviated her severe heel pain. She later sought out El-Naggar for chronic neck and shoulder issues, and with each session, she felt progressively better.

Xinhua