Abstract
Objective This study aimed at investigating the effects of wrist-ankle acupuncture-moxibustion and hot compression with Chinese herbal medicine on pain symptoms, endothelin-1 (ET-1), and calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP) concentrations of patients with cervical radiculopathy (CR). Methods A total of 82 patients with CR were randomly divided into the study group and control group, with 41 cases in each group. The control group was treated with standard treatment. In addition to standard treatment, the study group was additionally treated with wrist-ankle acupuncture-moxibustion and hot compression with Chinese herbal medicine. The ET-1 and CGRP concentrations in the plasma were measured by the radioimmunoassay method. Results The total response rate in the study group and the control group was 97.55% and 82.93%, respectively. The study group showed lower scores of the visual analogue scale (VAS), Northwick Park Neck Pain Questionnaire (NPQ), McGill Pain Questionnaire (MPQ), numbness intensity assessment, and neck disability index (NDI) but higher scores of the Short Form-36 (SF-36) health survey questionnaire than the control group after treatment. Besides, the study group exhibited reduced ET-1 and substance P (SP) concentrations concomitant with increased CGRP and β-endorphin (β-EP) concentrations compared with the control group. Conclusion Wrist-ankle acupuncture-moxibustion and hot compression with Chinese herbal medicine could effectively alleviate the pain of CR patients, affect ET-1 and CGRP concentrations, promote the recovery of cervical function, and improve the quality of life.
Highlights
Cervical radiculopathy (CR) is a common disorder which accounts for a high proportion of all cervical spondylosis, approximately 60 to 70% [1]
3.2. erapeutic Effectiveness between the Two Groups. e CR patients, who were supplemented with wrist-ankle acupuncture-moxibustion and hot compression with Chinese herbal medicine, recovered better than those who received standard treatment only. e total response rate in the study group and control group was 97.55% and 82.93%, respectively, indicating that the treatment of wrist-ankle acupuncture-moxibustion and hot compression of the traditional Chinese medicine bag is beneficial to recovery for the patients with CR (P < 0.05, Table 2)
Additional Wrist-Ankle Acupuncture-Moxibustion and Hot Compression with Chinese Herbal Medicine Alleviated Pain and Numbness for CR Patients. e pain intensity of all patients was assessed by the visual analogue scale (VAS), Neck Pain Questionnaire (NPQ), and McGill Pain Questionnaire (MPQ)
Summary
Cervical radiculopathy (CR) is a common disorder which accounts for a high proportion of all cervical spondylosis, approximately 60 to 70% [1]. CR is associated with increased healthcare costs and decreased productivity. It was estimated in 2010 that the healthcare costs and the value of lost productivity were $261 to $300 billion and $29.9 billion to $335 billion, respectively, caused by pain [3]. E occurrence of CR is prone to increase year by year due to aging of the population, lifestyle changes, and work or life pressure. CR treatment involves surgical intervention, such as anterior cervical decompression and fusion, cervical disc replacement, and posterior foraminotomy, and nonsurgical intervention. All CR patients should be treated with strict conservative treatment for at least 6 weeks unless the occurrence of myelopathy or severe muscle weakness or no improvement after 6 to 12 weeks of nonsurgical intervention [4].
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