ABSTRACT
Objective To evaluate the therapeutic effect of acupuncture combined with rehabilitation training on children with cerebral palsy. Methods A total of 68 children with cerebral palsy who met the inclusion criteria were randomly divided into two groups, 34 in each group. The control group was treated with Bobath therapy combined with Vojta therapy for rehabilitation training, while the observation group was treated with acupuncture on the basis of the control group. Both groups were treated for 12 weeks. Modified Ashworth method was used to assess the muscular tension of lower limbs, the gross motor function scale was used to assess the gross motor function, and the Fugl-Meyer motor function evaluation method was used to evaluate the limb motor function of children. And the serum levels of vascular endothelial growth factor and creatine kinase brain isoenzyme (CK-BB) were detected by ELISA. Results After treatment, the muscle tension score (1.3 ± 0.3 vs. 1.7 ± 0.4, t=4.108) in the observation group was significantly lower than that in the control group, while the GMFM score (55.7 ± 13.7 vs. 37.8±11.4, t=5.881) significantly higher than that in the control group (P<0.01). The serum VEGF (145.67 ± 19.78 ng/L vs. 171.35 ± 22.54 ng/L, t=4.993) in the observation group were significantly lower than those of the control group (P<0.01). The levels of CK-BB (71.46 ± 17.62 U/L vs. 95.76 ± 19.65 U/L, t=5.368) in the observation group were significantly lower than those of the control group (P<0.01). The total effective rate was 94.1% (32/34) in the observation group and 73.5% (25/34) in the control group. There were significant differences between the two groups (χ2=5.314, P=0.021). Conclusions Acupuncture combined with rehabilitation training can improve the muscle tension and gross motor function of children with cerebral palsy, reduce the levels of VEGF and CK-BB in serum of children with cerebral palsy, and improve the clinical effect.