ABSTRACT
Objective To investigate the therapeutic efficacy of acupuncture plus Bobath therapy in treating motor dysfunction of the core muscles in patients with hemiplegia after cerebral stroke.Method Totally 144 patients with post-stroke hemiplegia were divided into a control group, treatment group 1 and treatment group 2. The treatment group 1 was intervened by Bobath therapy, while the treatment group 2 was by abdominal acupuncture and scalp acupuncture in association with Bobath therapy. The recruited patients were examined for the manual muscle strength rating of the abdominal core muscles, Berg Balance Scale (BBS) score, and Barthel Index (BI) score on the day of admission, the 30th day and 60th day after admission.Result There were no significant inter-group differences in comparing the core muscle strength, BBS, and the Activities of Daily Living (ADL) on the day of admission (P>0.05). The core muscle strength, BBS, and ADL were significantly increased on the 30th and 60th day after admission in the three groups (P<0.05), and the scores in treatment group 2 were significantly higher than that in the control group and treatment group 1 (P<0.05).Conclusion Acupuncture plus Bobath therapy can significantly improve the motor dysfunction of the core muscles in patients with hemiplegia after cerebral stroke.