Clinical effect of acupoint thread-embedding therapy at different intervals in the intervention of metabolic syndrome / 针刺研究

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the clinical effect of acupoint thread-embedding therapy at different intervals in the treatment of metabolic syndrome, and to find the optimal treatment interval. METHODS: A total of 70 patients with metabolic syndrome were randomly divided into treatment group 1 (n＝35)and treatment group 2(n＝35). Both groups were given acupoint thread-embedding therapy at Zhongwan (CV12), bilateral Liangmen (ST21), bilateral Huaroumen (ST24), bilateral Tianshu (ST25), bilateral Daimai (GB26), Guanyuan (CV4), bilateral Dachangshu (BL25), bilateral Pishu (BL20), bilateral Zusanli (ST36), bilateral Yinlingquan (SP9), and bilateral Fenglong (ST40), and the treatment interval was 7 d for treatment group 1 and 14 d for treatment group 2. Each course of treatment was 42 d, and both groups were treated for 2 courses. Waist circumfe-rence (WC), hip circumference (HC), waist-hip ratio (WHR), body mass index (BMI), serum triglyceride (TG), high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), fasting plasma glucose (FPG), and glycosylated hemoglobin (Hb1Ac) were measured before and after treatment to analyze clinical outcome, and adverse reactions were recorded. RESULTS: After treatment, both groups had significant reductions in WC, HC, WHR, BMI, TG, LDL-C, FPG and Hb1Ac (P0.05). CONCLUSION: Under the premise of ensuring efficacy and safety, an interval of 7 d is the optimal interval for acupoint thread-embedding therapy in the clinical intervention of metabolic syndrome.

Dry eye syndrome of deficient lacrima production treated with the acupoint thread-embedding therapy: a randomized controlled trial / 中国针灸

OBJECTIVE@#To compare the therapeutic effects on the relevant symtoms in the patients with dry eye syndrome treated with the acupoint thread-embedding therapy versus topical artificial tears eye drops.@*METHODS@#A total of 88 patients with dry eye syndrome of deficiency lacrima production were randomized into an acupoint thread-embedding therapy group (thread-embedding group) and a control group with topical artificial tears eye drops (medication group), 44 cases in each one. In the thread-embedding group, 3 cases were dropped out. In the thread-embedding group, Ganshu (BL 18), Pishu (BL 20) and Shenshu (BL 23) etc. were selected and the acupoint thread-embedding therapy was operated once every 30 days, totally for two treatments. In the medication group, the topical artificial tears eye drops was used, 4 to 6 times a day, one drop each time, for 8 weeks totally. Separately, before treatment, after 4-week treatment and 8-week treatment as well as in 8 weeks and 12 weeks of the follow-up, the levels of lactoferrin in tears were determined and the scores of the relevant symptoms of ocular surface such as eye dryness, foreign body sensation in the eyes and eye fatigue were evaluated.@*RESULTS@#In the thread-embedding group, after 4-week and 8-week of treatment as well as in 8-week and 12-week follow-up, the scores of eye dryness, foreign body sensation, burning sensation of eye, phengophobia and eye fatigue were reduced significantly as compared with those before treatment (all 0.05). The levels of lactoferrin in tears at each time point after treatment in the thread-embedding group were higher than the medication group (<0.05).@*CONCLUSION@#The acupoint thread-embedding therapy effectively improves in the relevant symptoms of ocular surface, such as eye dryness, foreign body sensation, burning sensation of eye, phengophobia and eye fatigue, and increases the level of lactoferrin in tears in the patients with dry eye syndrome of deficiency aqueous production. In the follow-up, the therapeutic effects of the acupoint thread-embedding therapy are significantly better than artificial tears eye drops.

Effect of acupoint thread-embedding therapy on the sitting ability of ataxia children with cerebral palsy / 针刺研究

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the effective of acupoint thread-embedding therapy for ataxia children with cerebral palsy. METHODS: A total of 70 ataxia children with cerebral palsy and a Gross Motor Function Measure (GMFM, Dimension B) score of <35 were enrolled and randomly divided into thread-embedding group and control group, with 35 children in each group, and 2 children in the thread-embedding group were lost to follow-up. The children in the control group were given routine rehabilitation treatment, including physical therapy, spleen-strengthening, kidney-nourishing, and Governor Vessel-regulating massage, vibroacoustic therapy, and scalp acupuncture, and those in the thread-embedding group were given thread-embedding therapy at the acupoints of Jianyu (LI15), Jianliao (SJ14), Tianzong (SI11), Tianshu (ST25), and HuatuoJiaji points (C4, L1 and L4) in addition to the treatment in the control group, with 6-8 acupoints selected each time, once a week. Each course of treatment was 4 weeks, with an interval of one week between two courses of treatment, and the children were treated for 3 courses. Level of sitting scale (LSS), incurvation reflex, and GMFM score were recorded to evaluate the improvement in sitting ability and clinical outcome. RESULTS: Both groups had significant improvements in LSS, incurvation reflex, and GMFM (Dimension A and B) score after treatment (P<0.01), and the thread-embedding group had significantly greater improvements than the control group (P<0.01). The thread-embedding group had a significantly higher overall response rate than the control group (90.9% [30/33] vs 68.5% [24/35], P<0.01). CONCLUSION: In addition to routine rehabilitation treatment, acupoint thread-embedding therapy can effectively suppress primitive reflex in ataxia children with cerebral palsy and significantly promote their sitting ability, and therefore, it is an effective acupuncture treatment method for ataxia children with cerebral palsy.