Relationship between the Electrical Resistance in Li4 Acupuncture Point and Pain Intensity in Patients Undergoing Facial Surgery.

Background: This study aimed to determine the relationship between li4 acupuncture point's electrical resistance and the intensity of pain in patients after facial surgery. We speculated that if this relationship could be proved, the construction of a special equipment to assess pain intensity is possible. This technique would not be subjective so the pain will be assessed more precisely. Methods: 100 patients between 17 to 65 years of age with pain after facial surgery participated in this study accomplished in Tehran Rasoule Akram Hospital and Al-Zahra Hospital in Isfahan, Iran. The pain intensity of the participants was entered in questionnaires in verbal rating scale after patients' recovery. Afterwards, the needles were inserted in Li4 and Li11 points and the electrical resistance of these two sites was measured and registered using the same scale. Findings: There were significant differences in the average pain intensity reported before and after narcotic injection. There was significant difference in resistance degrees before and after narcotic injection (P < 0.001). Vomiting and itching were observed in 20% and 3% of patients respectively, but there was no evidence of other possible side effects. Conclusion: It appears that there is a positive relationship between the electrical resistance of Li4 and Li11acupuncture points and pain intensity in facial surgery patients. If these findings would be confirmed by future studies, it would be possible to design an equipment to objectively measure the pain intensity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]