Clinical observation on 90 cases of primary dysmenorrhea treated by buccal acupuncture therapy:a randomized controlled study

OBJECTIVE:To explore the short-term and long-term efficacy of buccal acupuncture therapy in the treatment of patients with primary dysmenorrhea(PD).METHODS:A total of 90 patients with PD who were admitted to the Second Affiliated Hospital of Zhejiang University of Traditional Chinese Medicine from January 2020 to December 2021 were included in this study and randomly divided into three groups,including the observation group,the control group,and the placebo group,with 30 patients in each group.Patients in the observation group were treated according to the syndrome types of Traditional Chinese Medicine,those in the control group were treated with Saridon,and those in the placebo group received a placebo.The visual analog scale(VAS)scores of these patients were evaluated at different time points(before treatment,5 min after needle retention,30 min after needle retention,1 h after treatment,2 h after treatment,1 d after treatment,and 2 d after treatment).The Cox Menstrual Symptom Scale(CMSS)scores were assessed before the treatment and after three courses of treatment.Besides,these two scales were also evaluated during follow-up.Moreover,the pain score and adverse reactions of these patients were assessed during treatment.RESULTS:After treatment,the VAS and CMSS scores in the observation group decreased significantly(P<0.05)5 and 30 min after needle retention and after treatment.CONCLUSION:Buccal acupuncture therapy is verified to have short-term efficacy in the treatment of PD.In addition,this therapy has an immediate analgesic effect and long-term efficacy in reducing the severity and frequency of PD.

Experimentally investigating the effect of buccal acupuncture on analgesic time-effect characteristics and monoamine neurotransmitters

Objective： To investigate the analgesic time-effect characteristics and changes in concentrations of rabbit＇s hypothalamic 5-hydroxytryptamine （5-HT） and noradrenaline （NE） caused by buccal acupuncture in the rheumatoid arthritis （RA） rabbits, and to reveal the analgesic central mechanism of buccal acupuncture, thereby providing a theoretical basis for the treatment of pain by buccal acupuncture. Methods： Forty rabbits were randomly divided into a normal group, a model group, a body acupuncture group, and a buccal acupuncture group, with 10 rabbits in each group. No model was established in the normal group, while equal dose of normal saline was injected at the matched site and time point; rabbits in other groups were subjected to the establishment of RA models using egg protein. From the 27th day of the experiment, rabbits in each group received the designated intervention. Rabbits in the normal group and the model group were fixed for 30 min every day using the same method as those in the other groups. In the acupuncture group, Dubi （ST 35） and Zusanli （ST 36） on bilateral hind limbs were selected. Perpendicular needling （using the needles with 0.25 mm in diameter and 25 mm in length） was performed with twirling manipulation for 15 s at intervals of 5 min. The needles were retained for 30 min and acupuncture was performed once a day. In the buccal acupuncture group, the knee point in the buccal acupuncture and needles with a diameter of 0.25 mm and a length of 15 mm were selected. Oblique needling was performed with twirling manipulation for 15 s at intervals of 5 min. The needles were retained for 30 min and acupuncture was performed once a day. The thermal pain thresholds at the O, 5, 15, 30, 60, 120 and 240 rain after the 1st and 10th acupuncture therapy were measured with a PL-200 thermal-inducing pain meter. After the 10th acupuncture therapy, rabbit＇s hypothalamus was removed, and the 5-HT and NE concentrations in the hypothalamus at the peak point of the acupuncture pain threshold curve were determined by high performance liquid chromatography （HPLC）. Results： The analgesic effect was obvious at 5 min after buccal acupuncture started, peaked at 30 min, and decreased to the lowest value at 240 rain. Rabbits in the body acupuncture group began to show significant analgesic effect at 15 min, which was peaked at 30 min, and began to decline at 60 min. The pain threshold at 240 min was still higher than that at 0 mino Compared with the model group, the concentrations of hypothalamic 5-HT in the buccal acupuncture group and the body acupuncture group was significantly increased, and the between-group differences were statistically significant （both P〈0.05）. The NE/5-HT ratios in hypothalamus in the buccal acupuncture group and the body acupuncture group were significantly lower than the ratio in the model group, and the differences were statistically significant （both P〈0.05）; difference in the decrease was statistically significant between the buccal acupuncture group and the body acupuncture group （P〈0.05）. Conclusion： The analgesic effect of buccal acupuncture shows an obvious time-dependent curve. It is characterized by rapid onset of pain relief, rapid increase and decline in pain threshold. 5-HT and NE levels in rabbit＇s hypothalamus can be affected by buccal acupuncture, with increased 5-HT concentration and reduced NE/5-HT rati0.

Buccal acupuncture plus exercise therapy for scapulohumeral periarthritis

Objective： To observe the clinical efficacy of buccal acupuncture plus exercise therapy in treating scapulohumera periarthritis （SP）. Methods： Sixty-three SP patients were intervened by bucca once every day, 5 sessions as a course, with a 2-3 d interval after 3 courses of treatment. acupuncture plus exercise therapy. The treatment was given between two courses. The therapeutic efficacy was observed Results： Thirty-five patients were recovered, 23 cases were improved, while 5 cases showed ineffective, and the total effective rate was 92.2%. Conclusion： Buccal acupuncture plus exercise therapy can produce a significant efficacy in treating SP, and thus is worth promotion in clinic.

Influence of buccal acupuncture on analgesic effect,immune indicators,and expression of Survivin and Livin proteins in patients with advanced-stage primary liver cancer

Objective To investigate the effects of buccal acupuncture on analgesia,immune indicators,and expression levels of Survivin and Livin proteins in patients with advanced-stage primary liver cancer.Methods Eighty patients with advanced-stage primary liver cancer were selected and divided into control and treatment groups according to the difference in treatment modalities,with 40 patients in each group.The control group received transcatheter arterial chemoembolization(TACE),and the treatment group received buccal acupuncture in addition to TACE.The recent efficacy,analgesic effect,liver function,serum tumor markers,Survivin and Livin protein expression levels in liver cancer tissue,and immune indexes were analyzed and compared between the two groups.Results The objective response rate(ORR)and disease control rate(DCR)of the treatment group were 37.5%and 77.5%,respectively,which were significantly higher than those of the control group(22.5%and 52.5%),and the recent efficacy of the treatment group was significantly better than that of the control group(P<0.05).The onset of analgesia in the treatment group was significantly faster than that in the control group(P<0.05),the duration of analgesia was significantly longer than that in the control group(P<0.05),and the numeric rating scale(NRS)score of pain after treatment was significantly lower than that in the control group(P<0.05).In the treatment group,the aspartate aminotransferase(AST),alanine aminotransferase(ALT),and albumin/globulin(A/G)were significantly lower than those in the control group(P<0.05),and the serum levels of alpha-fetoprotein(AFP),alpha-L-fucosidase(AFU),and carcinoembryonic antigen(CEA)were significantly lower than those in the control group(P<0.05),and the expression levels of Survivin and Livin in liver cancer tissue were significantly lower than those in the control group(P<0.05);CD4^(+)and CD4^(+)/CD8+in the treatment group were significantly higher than those in the control group,and CD8+was significantly lower than that in the control group after treatment(P<0.05).Conclusion Buccal acupuncture can reduce the degree of pain and liver function damage in patients with advanced-stage primary liver cancer and lower the serum tumor marker levels,and its mechanism of action may be related to the down-regulation of Survivin and Livin protein expression levels in the liver cancer tissue and the regulation of the immune function.