The
oculomotor nerve paralysis usually causes ophthalmoplegia, leading to the
impairment of eye movements or the response of pupils to light. Acupuncture
treatment with patients suffering from oculomotor nerve palsy-induced
ophthalmoplegia markedly improved the condition, according to a report recently
published in journal of Evidence-Based Complimentary and Alternative Medicine.
The oculomotor
nerve innervates the eyelid and four external ocular muscles including the
medial rectus, superior rectus, inferior rectus and inferior oblique and
others. People with oculomotor nerve palsy have double vision when looking a
certain direction, the eyelid drop and widened pupil. The oculomotor nerve palsy
is caused by either the pressure on the nerve or inadequate blood flow to the
nerve, such as diabetes, hypertension and other disorders that affect blood
supply to the oculomotor nerve. The common approach involves treatment to the
causes and symptom therapy; either is in many cases not satisfactory.
Recently, Dr.
JQ Bi and colleagues in China conducted a pilot randomized controlled clinical
study to assess the effect of acupuncture on the oculomotor palsy. A total of
40 patients with oculomotor palsy were randomly divided into acupuncture and
control group (n=20 each group). Acupuncture stimulation was applied on
acupoints ST1, EX-HN4, EX-HN5 and bilateral LI4 for 20 min each time, three
times a week for four weeks. For sham control group, the same acupoints were
applied but without the insertion of needles into the skin. The treatment
outcome is measured by monitoring the cervical range of motion (CROM), the
palpebral fissure size, response rate, at the baseline and the end of treatment.
It was
reported, at the end of the study that acupuncture treatment significantly
improved the conditions judged by the outcome measurements, e.g. CROM, the
palpebral fissure size, response rate, compared with control group. No adverse
effect was reported. The study suggested that acupuncture could be a feasible
treatment for oculomotor palsy.
Reference
JQ Bi et al., Acupuncture
for the Treatment of Oculomotor Paralysis: A Pilot Randomised Controlled Trial.
Evidence-Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine, Volume 2016, Article ID
3961450,6 pages. http://www.hindawi.com/journals/ecam/2016/3961450/
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