The U.S military is adding acupuncture to its repertoire for relieving chronic pain, said Pacific College of Oriental Medicine officials.

In fact, the Air Force will add a class in "battlefield acupuncture" beginning next year for physicians being deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan, the college said Monday in a news release.

Acupuncture can relieve a range of pain, including sharp chronic pain, for days at a time, Pacific College said.

Physicians will learn auricular acupuncture -- or acupuncture of the ear -- is the primary technique the physicians will learn, officials said. Pacific College of Oriental Medicine has locations in San Diego, Chicago and New York.

Battlefield acupuncture has been effective among patients suffering from a combination of combat wounds and psychological injury.