Clinical observation of warm needling moxibustion plus flash cupping for remission-stage peripheral facial paralysis due to wind-cold

Objective： To observe the clinical efficacy of warm needling moxibustion plus flash cupping for remission-stage peripheral facial paralysis （FP） due to wind-cold. Methods： Fifty eligible patients were randomized into a warm needling moxibustion group and an acupuncture-cupping group, 25 cases in each group. The warm needling moxibustion group was intervened by acupuncture at Fengchi （GB 20）, Yangbai （GB 14） towards Yuyao （EX-HN 4）, Xiaguan （ST 7）, Dicang （ST 4） towards Jiache （ST 6）, Quanliao （SI 18）, and Hegu （LI 4）, plus warm needling moxibustion at Quanliao （SI 18）; the acupuncture-cupping group received flash cupping on the affected side in addition to the intervention given to the warm needling moxibustion group. The two groups were both treated once a day, 10 times as a treatment course, for 3 courses in total. The House-Brackmann （H-B） facial nerve grading system was observed before and after the intervention to evaluate the facial nerve function in the two groups, and the therapeutic efficacies were also compared between the two groups. Results： The two treatment protocols both can promote the recovery of facial nerve function. The total effective rate was 92.0% in the acupuncture-cupping group versus 72.0% in the warm needling moxibustion group, and the between-group difference was statistically significant （P〈O.05）. Conclusion： Warm needling moxibustion plus flash cupping can produce a more significant efficacy than dry warm needling moxibustion in treating remission-stage peripheral FP due to wind-cold.

Clinical application and research progress of cupping therapy

Objective：This article collected,organized,and summarized the medical literatures of cupping therapy from three major Chinese databases including China National Knowledge Infrastructure（CNKI）,Chongqing VIP（VIP）,and Wan Fang,with cupping,moving cupping,flash cupping,pricking cupping,or medicinal cupping as the retrieve title or key words,and the retrieve range was from 1953 to July 15,2015.This article was to give an overall review of cupping therapy from the clinical application and mechanism research based on its application form,indications,and mechanism research progress.The results showed that there are various types of cupping methods;its indications cover multiple subjects such as internal medicine,external medicine,gynecology and pediatrics;and its major action mechanisms include negative pressure suction,increasing pain threshold,promoting dermal blood flow and improving body immunity.