You have got to be kidding:
Impossible to have effects except as a placebo. Energy meridians have never been proven to exist.
No mechanism of action is possible.
But you're also using appeal to antiquity which is not scientific
But if you believe, have at it, recognizing these possible side effects;
The latest here:
Effects of Acupuncture in Ischemic Stroke Rehabilitation: A Randomized Controlled Trial
Lixia Li1†, Weifeng Zhu1†, 
Guohua Lin2*, Chuyun Chen1*, Donghui Tang3, Shiyu Lin2, Xiaorong Weng3, Liqin Xie1, 
Lihong Lu1 and Weilin Li4- 1Department of Acupuncture and Moxibustion, The Affiliated TCM Hospital of Guangzhou Medical University, Guangzhou, China
- 2Department of Acupuncture and Moxibustion, The First Affiliated Hospital of Guangzhou University of Chinese Medicine, Guangzhou, China
- 3Department of Psychiatry, Liwan District Hospital of Chinese Medicine, Guangzhou, China
- 4Xin Hua College of Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China
Background: Acupuncture is a well-known treatment option for ischemic stroke recovery, but evidence of its effectiveness remains limited. This is a randomized controlled trial to evaluate the effectiveness of acupuncture treatment for ischemic stroke rehabilitation.
Methods: Rehabilitation training was provided to the control group. In acupuncture arm 1, these acupoints were derived from the ancient books, including GV20 (baihui), GV26 (shuigou), PC9 (zhongchong), ST6 (jiache), ST4 (dicang), LI15 (jianyu), LI11 (quchi), LI4 (hegu), GB30 (huantiao), GB31 (fengshi), GB34 (yanglingquan), and GB39 (xuanzhong). In acupuncture arm 2, the acupoints used were GV20 (baihui), PC6 (neiguan), LI11 (quchi), LI10 (shousanli), SJ5 (waiguan), LI4 (hegu), GB30 (huantiao), ST36 (zusanli), GB34 (yanglingquan), SP6 (sanyinjiao), ST41 (jiexi), and LR3 (taichong), which were extracted from Acupuncture and Moxibustion Science. After acupuncture, the needles were left in for 30 min and manually manipulated every 10 min. The three groups received treatment once a day, 5 times a week for 2 weeks. The primary outcome was the National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS), and the secondary outcomes were the Barthel Index (BI) and the Modified Ashworth Scale (MAS). Outcomes were measured in patients both before and after treatment.
Results: A total of 497 patients with ischemic stroke were randomized into either arm 1 (159 cases), arm 2 (173 cases), or the control group (165 cases). After 2 weeks of treatment, the NIHSS scores for arm 1 were lower than those of the control group (P = 0.017); the BI scores were higher in arm two than that in the control group at T2 (P = 0.016) and follow-up (P = 0.020). Additionally, there was no significant difference between arm one and the control group for either the BI scores or the MAS scores (P > 0.05) and no significant difference between arm two and the control group for the MAS scores or the NIHSS scores (P > 0.05).
Conclusion: The clinical efficacy of arm 1 and arm 2 (acupuncture groups) was superior to that of the control group, but there was no difference between the effects of the two acupuncture groups.
Clinical Trial Registration: http://www.chictr.org.cn/index.aspx, identifier: ChiCTR-IOR-16008627.
Background
Stroke is widespread around the world. According to recent reports (1–3) the incidence of stroke in China is 274–379 per 100,000 people, of which ischemic stroke accounts for 60–70%. Three-fourths of stroke survivors are left with disability of varying degrees and about 40% are severely disabled. In China, the care for patients with stroke imposes heavy economic burdens on both the state and many families.
Ischemic stroke is the common term for cerebral infarction, which disrupts cerebral artery blood flow through several pathways, such as cerebral arteriosclerosis or cerebral artery thrombosis, causing hypoxia and ischemic necrosis in local brain tissue. This results in corresponding neurologic deficits (4). The clinical manifestations of ischemic stroke are focal neurological deficits such as hemiplegia, aphasia, dysphagia, visual impairment, and mental disturbances. Ultra-early thrombolysis has been used widely in the acute phase of stroke. However, due to its time-restricted application, the probability of thrombolysis is only 2.4% (5). This leaves intravenous or oral medications, rehabilitation training, and prevention of complications as the primary treatment measures for most patients with stroke.
Acupuncture has been used for the treatment of stroke since ancient times. The stroke symptoms and acupoints were recorded in the earliest Chinese medicine canon named the Yellow Emperor's Inner Classics (Huang-Di-Nei-Jing in Chinese), while the syndrome differentiation of stroke and its treatment were described in the Comprehensive Achievements of Acupuncture and Moxibustion (Zhen-Jiu-Da-Cheng in Chinese). This provides a theoretical basis for the treatment of apoplexy by acupuncture. At present, new acupuncture theories and techniques are still being developed. These include body acupuncture, scalp acupuncture, electrical acupuncture, and eye acupuncture. Effective treatment is dependent on the proper choice of acupuncture points. The acupoints in this study were selected based on ancient literature and Acupuncture and Moxibustion Science (6). They were chosen because of their wide application, frequent use, and direct curative effect. These acupoints possess the following characteristics: they are connected to the yang meridians. The Du Meridian, the Large Intestine Meridian, the Stomach Meridian, and the Gallbladder Meridian are the most relevant yang meridians in this regard. Since GV20 is the meeting of various yang meridians, it is the most frequently selected acupoint, which has the effect of awakening the brain and pacifying the spirit (Xingnaoanshen) and expelling wind to open the orifices (Qufengkaiqiao) (7). The Stomach Meridian and the Large Intestine Meridian have the functions of harmonizing Qi and blood and relieving limbs and joints. The Gallbladder Meridian is related to tendons and has the function of stimulating the circulation of the blood and relaxing the muscles and joints. In Chinese medicine, yin and yang balance is important to maintain the physiological equilibrium of the human body. The acupoints on the yang meridians have the effect of replenishing yang qi. However, patient with apoplexy often shows symptoms such as paralysis and aphasia that belong to Yin syndrome. This is in line with the viewpoint of treating yin disease with Yang. The other feature of the selected acupoints in this study is that they have a unique therapeutic effect and a specific name. The main ones are the convergence points (Jiao-hui-xue) and the He acupoints, in which Jiao-hui acupoints enable the Qi and blood of meridians to communicate with each other for the treatment of the disease of intersecting meridians. The He acupoint is one of the five Shu points (Wu-shu-xue) and it is the acupoint with the greatest Qi and blood. Therefore, it is easier to mobilize Qi and blood in the treatment of apoplexy by needling such acupoints. This provides a sound theoretical basis for effective stroke treatment (8–10). However, acupuncture's clinical efficacy needs further validation in clinical trials.
A prospective randomized controlled trial was conducted to explore an effective scheme for acupuncture treatment of ischemic stroke and to provide scientific evidence for the effectiveness of acupuncture for stroke rehabilitation.
No comments:
Post a Comment