This blog is to share the latest research and development of acupuncture and raise the awareness of alternative treatments for your conditions, and is for information only.

Thursday 27 November 2014

Acupuncture helps reverse symptoms of multiple system atrophy

Although there is no cure for multiple system atrophy (MSA) also called shy dragger syndrome, alternative medicine such as acupuncture is very effective in relieving many symptoms or even reverse them.

Dr. Colet Lahoz in the United State has had success in treating patients with MSA using acupuncture treatment, plus herbal medicine and dietary supplements. She found that patients responded well to aggressive acupuncture therapy, incorporating with electrical stimulation.

Within 32 MSA patients treated, 30 patients experienced improvement in their symptoms. Patients showed varying degrees of improvement, some as early as 2 weeks after starting treatments and continued to gain improvement as long as they stayed with the program. This is an important since MSA is characterized by rapid deterioration, resulting in death usually within 7-10 years following diagnosis.

It was noted that patients who were not taking prescription medications responded faster than those who were taking drugs. For example, the patients who were not taking blood pressure medication experienced better results from the acupuncture than those who were taking drugs for orthostatic hypotension.

Although the cause of MSA is unclear, inflammation, dysfunction in immune system and autonomic system are all believed to be involved in the development of MSA. Acupuncture as many preclinical and clinical studies reported that it reduces inflammation, modulates immune system and autonomic system, leading to normalizing haemostasis and improve many conditions.

Reference:

Lahoz SC, Shy dargger syndrome demonstrate syndrome reversal using acupuncture, herbal medicine and hypnotherapy.  http://eastwest-mn.home.comcast.net/~eastwest-mn/Shy_Drager_Syndrome.htm

Thursday 20 November 2014

Acupuncture significantly reduced pain caused by orthodontic adjustment

Acupuncture treatment performed before orthodontic therapy markedly reduced post-adjustment pain in patients with fixed appliances, according to a report published in the Dental Press Journal of Orthodontics.

It has been acknowledged that dental therapy including orthodontic treatment, even if analgesic and anaesthetic medication are used, by most people, cause pain or even light distress. Considering high rate of patients complaining about pain suffered during orthodontic therapy, different methods have been considered for its pain control, such as Lower-power laser application, transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation etc. However, the results in many cases are not satisfactory.  

Doctor Boleta-Ceranto and colleagues in Brazil carried out small clinical study, performed acupuncture before orthodontic adjustment in orthodontic patients to assess its pain control effect. Eleven patients with fixed appliance who needed monthly adjustment were treated acupuncture at acupoints LI4 and ST6 for 20 mins before orthodontic adjustments. Analogue Visual Scare was used to measure the level of pain three months without acupuncture and 3 months following acupuncture treatment.

It was found that acupuncture treatment produced a statistically significant reduction in pain level index for all patients. No incidence was reported.

The study concluded that acupuncture is a safe and effective treatment in reducing pain caused by orthodontic post-adjustment procedure.

Reference:
Boleta-Ceranto et al., Orthodontic post-adjustment pain control with acupuncture. Dental Press J. Orthod. vol.19 no.4 Maringá July/Aug. 2014.   http://www.scielo.br/scielo.php?pid=S2176-94512014000400100&script=sci_arttext

Thursday 13 November 2014

Acupuncture plus massage help improve pain, sleep in a patient with lupus erythematosus

Acupuncture plus massage helped improve pain, sleep and quality of life in a patient with systemic lupus erythematosus, according to a case report, recently published in the Journal of Ayurveda Integration Medicine.

Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is a auto-immune disorder characterized by acute and chronic inflammation of various tissues and organs of body. SLE causes various symptoms, the common being joint pains, skin rashes and tiredness, which greatly impacted sleep and quality of life of patients. The exact cause of SLE is not yet known; however, the immune system mistakenly attacks its own tissues and causes damages. The course of disease is unpredictable, with periods of illness alternating with remission. There is no cure for SLE. The common treatment includes immusuppressive medication aiming to relieve symptoms and protect organs by decreasing inflammation and the level of autoimmune activity in the body.

Recently Dr. Dr. A. Mooventhan and colleagues in India used acupuncture and massage to treat a patient with systemic lupus erythematosus. Acupuncture was given at acupoints GV-20, GV-6, LI-11, HT-7, GB-34, and KI-3 for 20 min, once a day for 15 days, and then a 7 day rest followed by another 15 sessions of acupuncture. Level of pain was assessed by Visual Analog Scale. Quality of sleep was measured by Epworth Sleepiness Scale and the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index. Short form-36 version 2 Health Survey was used to measure the general quality of life.

At the end of treatment, it was reported that acupuncture significantly reduced pain, improved the quality of sleep and general quality of life of the patient. Although this is a case report, the results are quite encouraging and prove the effectiveness of acupuncture and massage in relieving the symptoms of SLE.

Reference:

A. Mooventhan & L. Nivethitha, Effects of acupuncture and massage on pain, quality of sleep and health related quality of life in patient with systemic lupus erythematosus. J Ayurveda Integr Med. 2014 Jul-Sep; 5(3): 186–189.   http://www.jaim.in/article.asp?issn=0975-9476;year=2014;volume=5;issue=3;spage=186;epage=189;aulast=Mooventhan

Friday 7 November 2014

Mechanism underlying the effect of acupuncture on stroke

Acupuncture stimulation at acupoints one day after cerebral ischemia significantly reduced the cerebral infarct area and neurological deficit scores accompanied by increasing release of neurotrophic factors and activating anti-apoptosis process in the brain of stroke model according to a study recently reported in the journal BMC Complementary and Alternative Medicine.

It has been reported here before that earlier acupuncture as an adjunct helped improve symptoms of patients with early stage stroke. However, how acupuncture exerts its therapeutic effect is not clear.

Recently researchers in Taiwan investigated the effect of early acupuncture stimulation on stroke model and the mechanism of action of acupuncture. Electroacupuncture stimulation at GV20 and GV14 was applied on mild cerebral ischemia injury rat, a mild stroke model, one day after ischemia formation for 2 days. Neurological functions such as motor, sensory, balance and reflex were assessed before and after acupuncture.

It was found that acupuncture stimulation significantly improved neurological functions and reduced cerebral infarct area compared with baseline and non-acupoint treated group. Biochemical studies showed that acupuncture markedly increased the release of neurotrophic factors and initiated anti-apoptotic process compared with controls. Blockers of neurotrophic factors stopped the neuroprotective effect of acupuncture in the stroke model.

The study suggests that early acupuncture use may act as neuroprotective therapy in the treatment of stroke.

Reference:
Cheng et al., Electroacupuncture-like stimulation at Baihui and Dazhui acupoints exerts neuroprotective effects through activation of the brain-derived neurotrophic factor-mediated MEK1/2/ERK1/2/ p90RSK/bad signaling pathway in mild transient focal cerebral ischemia in rats. BMC Complementary and Alternative Medicine2014,14:92    http://www.biomedcentral.com/1472-6882/14/92