Effects of Bee Venom Injections at Acupoints on Neurologic Dysfunction Induced by Thoracolumbar Intervertebral Disc Disorders in Canines: A Randomized, Controlled Prospective Study.

Li-Chuan Tsai,Ching-Liang Hsieh,Yi-Wen Lin

doi:10.1155/2015/363801

Li-Chuan Tsai, Ching-Liang Hsieh + Show 1 more

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https://doi.org/10.1155/2015/363801

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Abstract

Intervertebral disk disease (IVDD) is a major spine disorder in canines that causes neurological dysfunction, particularly in the thoracolumbar area. Analgesic and anti-inflammatory drugs are typically used to reduce nociceptive signals to decrease canine suffering. Bee venom (BV) has been reported to exert anti-inflammatory and analgesic effects. Injection of BV at acupoints has been widely used to treat clinical disorders including inflammation, pain, and arthritis. The current study was intended to determine whether BV injections at acupoints can enhance treatment of canine neurological dysfunction caused by IVDD. A single-blind controlled trial involving 40 adult canines with neurological dysfunction induced by IVDD subdivided into 2 groups was designed, and 36 canines finished the study. The myelopathy scoring system (MSS) grade and functional numeric scale (FNS) scores improved further after BV treatment than after control treatment. BV injection exerted a particularly strong effect on canines with moderate to severe IVDD and dramatically reduced clinical rehabilitation time. The results indicate that BV injections at acupoints are more effective at protecting canines from IVDD-induced neurological dysfunction and pain than is treatment alone.

Highlights

Intervertebral disc disease- (IVDD-) induced neurological dysfunction is one of the spinal diseases most frequently diagnosed in clinics with a prevalence of approximately 2% [1, 2]
This paper reports that both control treatment and Bee venom (BV) treatment can reliably improve the myelopathy scoring system (MSS) grade and functional numeric scale (FNS) score of canines with Intervertebral disk disease (IVDD)
Our results indicated that BV injections can improve both MSS and FNS scores in canines with moderate to severe IVDD, meaning that BV is an effective form of therapy

Summary

Introduction

Intervertebral disc disease- (IVDD-) induced neurological dysfunction is one of the spinal diseases most frequently diagnosed in clinics with a prevalence of approximately 2% [1, 2]. Several compounds are purified from BV, such as melittin, adolapin, apamin, phospholipase, and amine These compounds can potentially cure inflammation, reduce pain, and treat arthritis [4]. Numerous studies have indicated that acupuncture is effective for treating low back, inflammatory, neuropathic, and postoperative pain [8, 11,12,13,14,15,16]. Acupuncture has been widely used for treating IVDD in canines [8, 10, 16], but researchers remain unsure whether BV injections can produce similar effects. Our results provide novel evidence that BV injections at acupoints are crucial for treating IVDD-related neurological dysfunction and pain

Material and Methods

Results

Discussion

Grades 3-4 5

Conclusion