RESUMO
Acupuncture is an ancient Chinese technique, developed over >3,000 years, in which 'acupoints' are stimulated with the aim of treating various diseases. A number of previous studies have indicated that acupuncture may play a role in inducing analgesia. Acupuncture-induced analgesia has been hypothesized to act on various parts of the central nervous system, including the spinal cord, brain stem, cerebral ganglia and cerebral cortex. The mechanisms underlying the effects of acupuncture have been purported to include neurohumors and neurotransmitters, such as opioids and γ-aminobutyric acid, signaling pathways and the immune response, which are all involved in the induction of analgesia.
RESUMO
We surveyed 128 preschool children in a lead-polluted area in Shanghai to study the relationship between blood lead level and neuropsychological functions, assessed by age-appropriate psychological tests. The geometric means of blood lead level was 21.7 + -10.8 micrograms/dl. Of 47 children aged below 30 months, there was no significant difference in BSID indices between the high and low lead subjects, although the high lead children tended to have poorer development scores than the low lead ones. On the other hand, of 81 children older than 46 months, the WPPSI IQ scores showed highly significant negative correlation with blood lead level. Step-wise regression and multiple analysis of covariance techniques were employed to find out and control the confounding factors. Even when 21 non-lead variables were considered, the IQ difference between high and low lead groups remained statistically significant. We concluded that the children, especially those older than 46 months, in the area investigated, did suffer from lead toxicity causing impairment in intelligence development. We support the view that marginally higher lead level in children should be taken seriously.