Effect of Acupuncture Treatment on Blood Pressure in Elderly Evaluated with Ambulatory Blood Pressure Monitoring (ABPM) / 日本温泉気候物理医学会雑誌

ABSTRACT

<b>Objective</b><br>This study evaluated the effect of acupuncture treatment on the blood pressure in the elderly based on measurements using the ambulatory blood pressure monitoring method (ABPM). The relationships between the psychological health status and the status evaluated by an oriental medical questionnaire were also examined.<br><b>Methods</b><br>The subjects consisted of 15 elderly females aged 75[±6]. A model TM-2421 (A & D Co., Tokyo, Japan) was used for ABPM. Blood pressure was measured before the acupuncture treatment, at the end of the treatment, and one month after the treatment.<br>The average systolic blood pressure (SBP), diastolic blood pressure (DBP), and pulse rate (PUL) were measured over 24 hours, daytime and nighttime; the hyperbaric index (HBI); and the circadian rhythm were measured by the cosinor method. Subjects were divided into two groups, hypertensive and normal groups, using JNC7 (daytime 135/85mmHg, nighttime 120/75mmHg) as the reference. Subjects were also asked to answer the questions in the Cornell Medical Index (CMI) and Meiji Oriental Medical Score (MOS).<br>Acupuncture treatment was applied twice a week over two months, a total of 18 times, with the aim of improving the blood pressure, psychological status, and chronic pain syndromes.<br><b>Results</b><br>Of the 15 subjects who participated in the recent study, six were in the normal blood pressure group and nine, in the hypertensive group.<br>Averages of both SBP and DBP measured over 24 hours, daytime and nighttime exhibited a uniform decreasing trend at the end of the treatment. In the hypertensive group, the average nighttime DBP showed a statistically significant difference. A significant decrease in the HBI was detected in the hypertensive group at the end of the treatment. CMI results indicated that the subjects who were rated abnormal tended to be more normal at the end of the treatment. The oriental medical status evaluated with MOS also indicated an improvement as a result of treatment.<br><b>Conclusion</b><br>Acupuncture treatment was considered to effectively decrease blood pressure and improve the psychological status and chronic pain of the elderly.