ABSTRACT
<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To explore the therapeutic effect and the mechanism of acupuncture in reducing body weight.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Fifty cases of simple obesity were randomly divided into an acupuncture group and a drug control group, 25 cases in each group. The patients in the acupuncture group were treated with body acupuncture at Tianshu (ST 25), Guanyuan (CV 4), etc, electroacupuncture and ear point tapping and pressing therapy (Shenmen, Endocrine, etc. were selected); the patients in the control group were treated with oral administration of sibutramine. The serum leptin level before and after treatment were determined and the therapeutic effect in reducing body weight was assessed.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>The total effective rate was 88.0% in the acupuncture group and 80. 0% in the control group, with no significant difference between the two groups (P>0.05); after treatment, the serum leptin level in both the two groups decreased significantly (P<0.01), and the decreasing amplitude in the acupuncture group was superior to that in the control group (P<0.05).</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>Acupuncture therapy has a definite therapeutic effect in reducing body weight, and the improvement of serum leptin level of the patient is possibly one of the mechanisms of acupuncture in reducing body weight.</p>