Therapeutic Acupuncture Research Articles

Laser doppler flowmetry in combined needle acupuncture and moxibustion: a pilot study in healthy adults.

Laser Doppler flowmetry (LDF) (DRT 4/Moor Instruments Ltd, Devon, UK) was used in this pilot study for monitoring the effects of an invariable acupuncture pattern on microcirculation of the skin before, during, and after combined needle acupuncture and moxibustion in 12 healthy volunteers (mean age 35.2 +/- 4.4 years, range 26-41 years, four female and eight male). According to the standards of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), this acupuncture pattern is assumed to be unspecific and non-therapeutic. Flux decreased during the treatment period (p<0.05) compared to the control phase before combined needle acupuncture and moxibustion. After the removal of the needles, flux did not return to the initial control value. No significant differences between mean arterial blood pressure, heart rate, skin temperature or gender were detected. A prediction of individual incidences and kinds of acupuncture effects in our healthy volunteers was not possible. Modern monitoring techniques like LDF could be a method to separate responders from non-responders to acupuncture in peripheral microcirculatory disorders. Further studies on patients with peripheral microcirculatory disorders are necessary in order to demonstrate the value of LDF in detecting responders/non-responders in combination with therapeutic acupuncture patterns according to TCM.

Complementary Health Care Services: A Logical Expansion

The literature shows that alternative health care is increasingly acceptable to consumers in the western world. Services such as therapeutic massage, acupuncture, yoga, and meditation have helped treat individuals suffering from everything from the common cold to HIV. This article describes some of the more common, complementary alternative medicine services being provided in the United States today. It also provides information for consideration by organizations regarding the appropriateness of expanding their product lines to include complementary health services. Issues to evaluate during the development of such services are suggested for the interested reader.

Akupunktur bei postoperativen Schmerzen nach Implantation einer Knieendoprothese - Eine plazebokontrollierte Studie zur Sofortwirkung

The analgetic effect of acupuncture in the postoperative period after total knee replacement was studied in a randomised placebo-controlled single-blind trial with cross-over in 50 patients. The patients of the acupuncture group (true treatment group) received a single-session, single-point acupuncture with manual stimulation of the needle. We used a special distal point for knee pain located on the homolateral arm according to the rules of traditional Chinese acupuncture. Considering recent concepts and methods for the evaluation of therapeutic acupuncture, the patients of the placebo group (control group) underwent a simulated acupuncture were the needle was not inserted into the patient. Pain before and after treatment was assessed using the visual analogue scale. Following acupuncture pain reduction was found to be 22 % and 36 % after 30 minutes. At both times the difference to the placebo group was highly significant (p <0,001). Furthermore the results of pain reduction during 24 hours indicate that there might be a several hours lasting intrinsic analgetic effect of acupuncture.

The Clinical Use of Acupuncture in Family Medicine

Acupuncture is indicated for a broad spectrum of painful and non-painful conditions. Medical acupuncture is the practice of therapeutic acupuncture by or under the direct supervision of a medical doctor. Integrated practice implies that the acupuncturist is fully trained and certified in both traditional Chinese medicine and Western medicine. Complementarity implies that the acupuncturist is a medical doctor who utilises this therapy in a competent, selective manner. Both models add to rather than detract from the practise of family medicine. Traditional Chinese concepts are discussed within the context of an integrated medical acupuncture practice in Canada.

The future development of chronic pain relief

AnaesthesiaVolume 46, Issue 2 p. 83-84 Free Access The future development of chronic pain relief A. Diamond, A. Diamond Frenchay Hospital, Bristol BS16 1LESearch for more papers by this author A. Diamond, A. Diamond Frenchay Hospital, Bristol BS16 1LESearch for more papers by this author First published: February 1991 https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2044.1991.tb09343.xCitations: 7AboutPDF ToolsRequest permissionExport citationAdd to favoritesTrack citation ShareShare Give accessShare full text accessShare full-text accessPlease review our Terms and Conditions of Use and check box below to share full-text version of article.I have read and accept the Wiley Online Library Terms and Conditions of UseShareable LinkUse the link below to share a full-text version of this article with your friends and colleagues. Learn more.Copy URL Share a linkShare onFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditWechat No abstract is available for this article. Reference 1 Melzack R, Wall PD. Pain mechanisms: a new theory. Science 1965; 150: 971– 9. 2 Bowsher DR, Foy PM, Shaw MDM. Central pain complicating infarction following subarachnoid haemorrhage. British Journal of Neurosurgery 1989; 3: 435– 41. 3 Kepes ER, Duncalf D. Treatment of backache with spinal injections of local anaesthetics, spinal and systemic steroids. Pain 1985; 22: 33– 47. 4 Flor H, Turk DC. Etiological theories and treatments for chronic back pain. I. Somatic models and interventions. Pain 1984; 19: 105– 21. 5 Vincent CA, Richardson PH. The evaluation of therapeutic acupuncture: concepts and methods. Pain 1986; 24: 1– 14. 6 Vincent CA, Richardson PH. Acupuncture for the treatment of pain: a review of evaluative research. Pain 1986; 24: 15– 40. 7 Leijon G, Boivie J, Johansson I. Central post stroke pain-neurological symptoms and pain characteristics. Pain 1989; 36: 13– 25. 8 Feinmann C. Pain relief by antidepressants; possible modes of action. Pain 1985; 23: 1– 8. 9 Roberts WJ. A hypothesis on the physiological basis for causalgia and related pains. Pain 1986; 24: 297– 311. 10 Bengtsson A, Bengtsson M. Regional sympathetic blockade in primary fibromyalgia. Pain 1988; 33: 161– 7. 11 Mechanic D. The concept of illness behavior. Journal of Chronic Diseases 1962; 15: 189– 94. 12 Fordyce WE. Behavioural methods in chronic pain and illness. St Louis , MO : Mosby, 1976. Citing Literature Volume46, Issue2February 1991Pages 83-84 ReferencesRelatedInformation

Acupuncture and gastric acid studies.

The effects of therapeutic acupuncture on gastric acid secretion on pain relief in chronic duodenal ulcer patients were studied. Ten adult Nigerian patients with clinical, endoscopic as well as radiological evidence of duodenal ulcer constituted the "Ulcer Group." Four other patients who gave history of dyspepsia formed the "Dyspeptic Group." Pentagastrin stimulation test was performed on all subjects pre- and post-acupuncture therapy. The classical Chinese acupuncture loci were employed. The mean Basal Acid Output (BAO) in the duodenal ulcer group was markedly reduced from 4.04 +/- 1.01 mMols/hour to 1.05 +/- 2.5 mMols/hour. The mean Maximal Acid Output (MAO) was lowered from 34.72 +/- 13.81 mMols/hour to 15.34 +/- 4.01 mMols/hour. The difference was statistically significant (P less than 0.001). It is more probable, therefore, that the relief of pain is attributable to the therapeutic inhibition of gastric hyperacidity in our patients. Thus, though pain relief has been previously demonstrated in response to acupuncture, the results of this investigation have gone further to show that acupunture achieves symptomatic relief through therapeutic gastric depression in duodenal ulcer patients.

The evaluation of therapeutic acupuncture

The paper describes a survey designed to evaluate the success of therapeutic acupuncture. Six hundred and sixty one patients were surveyed. Preliminary results indicated that the success rate is related mainly to the diagnosis, and the patient's conditions prior to the treatment. The survey also indicated that the durability of pain relief is only temporary in many cases.

Therapeutic Acupuncture

The use and effectiveness of acupuncture has become a major controversy. The limited data on the subject and the wide variety of methods referred to as "therapeutic acupuncture" have added to the confusion. Among physicians who use acupuncture as one modality of treatment, there exist many opinions regarding the definition of an acupuncture point, the usefulness of the concepts of traditional acupuncture, the methods of stimulating the acupuncture points, the selection of points used, and the optimal frequency and number of treatments. This review analyzes some of the studies published in English language journals pertaining to these controversies. The possible effects of acupuncture in releasing endorphins and stimulating the autonomic nervous system are discussed. The differences in methods must be identified and resolved before an accurate assessment of "acupuncture" can be made.

Acupuncture Analgesia and Anesthesia

After the war of liberation, Mao Tse Tung encouraged an integration of Western and traditional Chinese medicine. Several schools of therapeutic acupuncture have defined different points of puncture, originally assumed to be on an empiric basis but now rationalized as areas where nerve endings congregate. Results of therapeutic acupuncture in China cannog be evaluated because of inadequate record keeping. At the University of Washington Pain Clinic, immediate results (two to three days) are good but never lasting, nor do they decrease concomitant medication. For anesthesia, acupuncture acts to produce only hypalgesia in most patients, although some experience total analgesia. Patient selection and mental preparation are careful. Hence, the method is used in much less than 10% of the operations in China, and in these the analgesia is satisfactory by Western standards in only approximately 30%. Concepts as to the mode of action of acupuncture analgesia range from an attitudinal change towards sensory input to the release of a neurohumoral analgesic substances.

The results of therapeutic acupuncture in a pain clinic.

Acupuncture has been used to treat various conditions of chronic pain in a pain clinic. Six hundred and six acupuncture treatments were administered within the space of 12 months to 72 patients who had not responded well to conventional treatment. At completion of the acupuncture treatments 19 patients showed marked improvement, 20 showed improvement and 21 transient improvement. Long-term results were also investigated at a mean of four months after the final treatment. The results of this follow-up study showed marked improvement in 11 patients and improvement in 20 others. In terms of conditions treated, best responses were obtained in patients with musculo-skeletal disorders, degenerative or osteoarthritis and headache.

Therapeutic Acupuncture in the People's Republic of China

THE purposes of this report are to review the use of therapeutic acupuncture in the People's Republic of China, to summarize the current status of acupuncture in the United States, and to offer conclusions that hopefully will help the physician place this technique in proper perspective. This report is based on observations made during a three-week visit to the People's Republic of China, communication with other physicians who have visited China, my activities as Chairman of the Ad Hoc Committee on Acupuncture of the National Institutes of Health and the American Society of Anesthesiologists, and review of the literature. The three-week trip, made as a member of the American delegation, was organized by the Committee on Scholarly Communication with the People's Republic of China, at the invitation of the Chinese Medical Association. The 16-member delegation was headed by John R. Hogness MD, then president of the Institute of Medicine of

Therapeutic acupuncture in the People's Republic of China implications for American medicine

Therapeutic acupuncture in the People's Republic of China implications for American medicine