Differences in functional magnetic resonance imaging following cutaneous and routine acupuncture at different acupoints

Few studies have examined the effects of different stimuli at a single acupoint using functional magnetic resonance imaging.The present study applied acupuncture at the Neiguan（PC 6）,Waiguan（SJ 5）,Zhigou（SJ 6） and Yanglingquan（GB 34） acupoints in healthy volunteers.fMRI was used to examine the activation of brain areas in response to different types of acupuncture（cutaneous or routine acupuncture） at each acupoint.There were no significant differences in the distribution of activation in the regions of interest between cutaneous and routine acupuncture at the Neiguan,Waiguan,and Zhigou acupoints,but some differences were observed between the two methods of acupuncture at the Yanglingquan acupoint.There were no significant differences in the intensity of induced activation between cutaneous and routine acupuncture at the Neiguan,Zhigou and Yanglingquan acupoints,but the activation intensity in the right cerebellum induced by routine acupuncture at the Waiguan acupoint was greater than that induced by cutaneous acupuncture.Results confirmed that cutaneous and routine acupuncture at the Neiguan,Waiguan,Zhigou and Yanglingquan acupoints activated different functional brain areas,and caused activation of different intensities in some areas.

CLINICAL OBSERVATION ON STAGE-AIDED TREATMENT OF 62 CASES OF PERIPHERAL FACIAL PARALYSIS WITH ACUPUNCTURE,MOXIBUSTION AND CUPPING

Objective: To probe the best therapy for peripheral facial paralysis. Methods: A total of 122 cases of facial paralysis patients were randomized into treatment group (n=62, treating the disease by stages) and control group (n=60). For patients at the acute stage in treatment group, main point Yifeng (TE 17) was pricked first, followed by performing cupping and moxibustion, for patients at the resting stage, main point Hegu (LI 4) was punctured with reducing needling method, combined with other acupoints in the light of the concrete situations. For patients at the restoration stage, main point Zusanli (ST 36) was punctured with reinforcing method in combination with seven-star-needle tapping at the local affected region. Patients of control group were treated with routine method by puncturing Fengchi (GB 20), Yifeng (TE 17), Jiache (ST 6), Hegu (LI 4), Taichong (LR 3), etc.. The treatment was conducted once daily, with 10 days being a therapeutic course. Results: Following 3 courses of treatment, of the 62 cases in treatment group, 44 (70.9%) were cured, 12 (19.4%) had remarkable improvement in their symptoms and signs, 6 (9.7%) had amelioration, with the cure plus markedly effective rate being 90.3%; of the 60 cases in control group, 30 (50.0%) were cured, 12 (20.0%) had apparent improvement, 16 (26.7%) had amelioration, and the rest 2 (3.3%) failed in the treatment, with the cure plus markedly effective rate being 70.0%. Ridit analysis showed that the cure rate and cure plus markedly effective rate of treatment group were significantly higher than those of control group (P<0.05). Conclusion: Stage-aided acupuncture treatment is superior to routine treatment for facial palsy.

Knee joint pain treated with scraping combined with collateral bloodletting therapy

Objective： To observe the clinical efficacy of knee joint pain treated with scraping combined with collateral bloodletting therapy in comparison with the routine acupuncture techniques.Methods： From March 2017 through to September 2017, 60 outpatients of knee joint pain were collected from the Acupuncture-Moxibustion Department. They were randomly divided into the group A（treated with scraping combined with collateral bloodletting therapy） and the group B（treated with the simple needling therapy of acupuncture）, 30 cases in each one. Once treatment was given every day and10 times consist of one course, two courses of treatment were required. At the end of treatment, the visual analogue scale（VAS） was adopted to evaluate the pain index, tenderness index and the overall effect of the patients in the two groups. Based on the Lysholm knee scale, the scores were compared in the patients of the two groups before and after treatment.Results： The total effective rate was 96.7% in the group A and was 86.7% in the group B, indicating the significant difference（P〈0.05）. VAS value was 3.03 ± 0.62 in the group A and was 3.67 ± 0.74 in the group B after treatment, indicating that difference is statistically significant（P〈0.05）. The Lysholm knee score was 89.2 ± 4.8 in the group A and was 82.4 ± 2.6 in the group B after treatment, indicating that difference is statistically significant（P〈0.05）.Conclusion： The scraping combined with collateral bloodletting therapy is significant in the efficacy on knee joint pain and feasible in the clinical guidance.