Clinical Observation of Moxibustion at He-Sea and Front-Mu Points for Chronic Atrophic Gastritis / 上海针灸杂志

ABSTRACT

Objective To observe the clinical efficacy of moxibustion at He-Sea plus Front-Mu points in treating chronic atrophic gastritis (CAG) due to deficient cold in spleen-stomach, and its effect on serum pepsinogen (PG) and gastrin. Method Sixty-three eligible patients with CAG due to deficient cold in spleen-stomach were divided into a control group (31 cases) and a treatment group (32 cases) by using random number table. The control group was intervened by Wei Fu Chun tablets, while the treatment group received moxibustion at He-Sea plus Front-Mu points, 12 weeks as a treatment course. Clinical efficacy, symptoms score of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), serum PGⅠ, PG Ⅱ and gastrin levels were evaluated. Result The total effective rate was 93.8% in the treatment group, significantly better than that in the control group (P<0.05); the TCM symptoms scores dropped significantly in both groups after the treatment and in the follow-up study (P<0.01), and the treatment group was markedly superior to the control group (P<0.01); the levels of PG Ⅰ, PG Ⅰ/Ⅱ ratio (PGR) and gastrin-17 (G-17) increased significantly in the treatment group after the intervention (P<0.01), and PG Ⅱ dropped significantly (P<0.05); after the treatment, thelevels of PG I, PGR and G-17 increased significantly in the control group (P<0.05); after the intervention, the treatment group was significantly better than the control group in comparing the levels of PG Ⅰ, PGR and G-17 (P<0.01), and there was a significant difference in comparing the level of PG Ⅱ between the two groups after the intervention (P<0.05). The follow-up showed that the HP positive rate was 3.1% in the treatment group, significantly lower than that in the control group (P<0.05). Conclusion Moxibustion at He-Sea plus Front-Mu points can significantly improve CAG symptoms, enhance HT clearance and lower the relapse; its action mechanism is possibly through up-regulating PGⅠ, PGR and G-17 and down-regulating PG Ⅱ.