Event Abstract Back to Event Visual pursuits and cervical tremor improved following electro-acupuncture Amy K. Moll1* 1 Carrick Institute, United States Introduction: This case describes pre- and post-examination findings following electro-acupuncture, highlighting the value of performing a Western functional neurological examination for baseline functional performance in an acupuncture clinical application. A 17-year old female patient with a history of concussion (age 9) and traumatic assault (age 14) presented with chronic nausea and anxiety for 3 years. She simultaneously developed progressively worsening digestive issues with an inability to digest protein, gluten, or dairy, leading her to adopt a very restrictive gluten-free dairy-free vegan diet. Examination: A neurological exam revealed that gaze holding in left visual gaze resulted in a yes-yes cervical tremor. There was a notable decrease gain of leftward visual pursuits with saccadic intrusions. Rapid alternating movements of the left arm were mildly dyspraxic and gait analysis identified a cross-steppage gait that worsened with dual-tasking with hesitations in gait without freezing. Diagnosis: A clinical diagnosis identified a movement disorder with frontal-parietal-basal ganglionic functional deficits. Treatment: Electro-acupuncture was performed bilaterally on P6 and two acupoints on the scalp – UB 9 threaded to UB 10, and a second point 0.5 cun lateral, threaded parallel to UB 9. Electro-acupuncture was performed on all 4 needles with 25 Hz microcurrent using a Pantheon 8C FDA approved electro-acupuncture device. Needles were retained for 20 minutes. Acupuncture points were selected to activate cerebellar integration and feed forward activation of the frontal-parietal cortex. The acupuncture point UB 9, when threaded in the direction of UB 10 is also referred to as both MS14 and the Balance Line due to its anatomical proximity to the cerebellum. In this case, the two scalp acupuncture points were needled on the left side only. Outcome: Following the electro-acupuncture, the cervical tremor was absent with gaze holding to the left and improvements in pursuit gain were observed without saccadic intrusions. Marked improvements were observed in rapid alternating movement of the left arm. Post-treatment gait analysis observed an absence of a cross-steppage gait with both normal gait and gait with dual-tasking without hesitations. The patient reported that she no longer experienced nausea following the electro-acupuncture session. Discussion: We are familiar with a fMRI study using acupuncture at P6 that was associated with an increased activity in midline cerebellar regions including the cerebellar nodulus and uvula (Yoo et al. 2004). This case provides an example of the value of a functional neurological approach directing acupuncture strategies. The utilization of Western pre- and post-neurological examinations can serve to inform acupuncture treatment strategies, quantifying the consequences of electro-acupuncture on human neurological function. Acknowledgements The author thanks Dr. Frederick Robert Carrick for his editorial contributions. References Yoo SS, Teh EK, Blinder RA, Jolesz FA: Modulation of cerebellar activities by acupuncture stimulation: evidence from fMRI study. Neuroimage 2004, 22:932-940. Keywords: Electro-acupuncture (EA), Nausea, movement disorder, Tremor, concussion Conference: International Symposium on Clinical Neuroscience, Orlando, United States, 24 May - 26 May, 2019. Presentation Type: Poster Presentation Topic: Clinical Neuroscience Citation: Moll AK (2019). Visual pursuits and cervical tremor improved following electro-acupuncture. Front. Neurol. Conference Abstract: International Symposium on Clinical Neuroscience. doi: 10.3389/conf.fneur.2019.62.00066 Copyright: The abstracts in this collection have not been subject to any Frontiers peer review or checks, and are not endorsed by Frontiers. They are made available through the Frontiers publishing platform as a service to conference organizers and presenters. The copyright in the individual abstracts is owned by the author of each abstract or his/her employer unless otherwise stated. Each abstract, as well as the collection of abstracts, are published under a Creative Commons CC-BY 4.0 (attribution) licence (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/) and may thus be reproduced, translated, adapted and be the subject of derivative works provided the authors and Frontiers are attributed. For Frontiers’ terms and conditions please see https://www.frontiersin.org/legal/terms-and-conditions. Received: 11 Feb 2019; Published Online: 27 Sep 2019. * Correspondence: Dr. Amy K Moll, Carrick Institute, Cape Canaveral, United States, amy@acupunctureneurology.com Login Required This action requires you to be registered with Frontiers and logged in. To register or login click here. Abstract Info Abstract The Authors in Frontiers Amy K Moll Google Amy K Moll Google Scholar Amy K Moll PubMed Amy K Moll Related Article in Frontiers Google Scholar PubMed Abstract Close Back to top Javascript is disabled. Please enable Javascript in your browser settings in order to see all the content on this page.