Effects of pestle needle on nerve conduction velocity and inflammatory injury in patients with diabetic peripheral neuropathy

Background:Diabetic peripheral neuropathy(DPN)is one of the most common complications of diabetes mellitus.Impaired neurological function is one of the main characteristics of DPN and is strongly associated with the inflammatory response.Our previous studies have confirmed that pestle needle can improve the nerve function of patients with DPN.But the mechanism of pestle needle treatment of DPN is still unclear.Methods:A total of 70 DPN patients who met the inclusion criteria were randomly divided into two groups.Control group(CG)(n=35)received DPN conventional treatment and the pestle needle group(PNG)(n=35)received pestle needle therapy at Zhiyang(DU09)eight array,Mingmen(DU04)eight array and Heche Road(from Mingmen(DU04)to Changqiang(DU01)),Zusanli(ST36),Sanyinjiao(SP06),Taixi(KI03)and Yongquan(KI01).Patients in the PNG group were required to take this treatment for 4 weeks,5 times a week.Examination indexes were collected before and after treatment,respectively.Nerve function was examined using the Toronto clinical scoring system and nerve conduction velocity detection.Serum inflammatory factors were measured by enzyme linked immunosorbent assay.Results:The Toronto clinical scoring system was significantly reduced in the PNG compared with the CG after treatment.The sensory nerve conduction velocity and motor nerve conduction velocity of the right peroneal and median nerves were significantly faster in the PNG than those in the CG(P<0.05).After treatment,serum interleukin-1 beta,interleukin-6 and tumor necrosis factor-alpha levels decreased in both groups,and the improvement of PNG was better than CG(P<0.05).Conclusion:The pestle needle can significantly improve the symptoms and nerve conduction velocity of DPN,and its mechanism may be related to the reduction of inflammatory factors.