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Bilateral Acupuncture Analgesia Observed by Quantitative Sensory Testing in Healthy Volunteers
- Source :
- Anesthesia & Analgesia. 110:1448-1456
- Publication Year :
- 2010
- Publisher :
- Ovid Technologies (Wolters Kluwer Health), 2010.
-
Abstract
- There is evidence that acupuncture activates different spinal and supraspinal antinociceptive systems, but the specific modulatory effects on the sensory system have not been systematically investigated. In this study, we evaluated the immediate effects of different types of acupuncture on thermal, mechanical, and vibratory sensory thresholds.Twenty-four healthy volunteers (12 men and 12 women, mean age 33.1 years) received 3 different forms of acupuncture in a single-blinded crossover design; these included manual acupuncture, acupuncture with low-frequency electrical stimulation, and acupuncture with high-frequency electrical stimulation. The time between the interventions was 1 week. All forms of acupuncture were applied unilaterally in the leg at standard acupuncture points: spleen 6, spleen 9, stomach 36, and gallbladder 39. The effects of acupuncture were evaluated by systematic quantitative sensory testing (QST) immediately after each intervention. QST was performed on bilateral lower extremities, including thermal and mechanical perception and pain and vibratory thresholds.The heat pain threshold was increased after manual acupuncture on the treated and untreated side compared with baseline. Low- and high-frequency electrostimulation led to a higher mechanical pain threshold on the treated side compared with baseline and manual acupuncture. The pressure pain threshold was increased by all forms of acupuncture on both sides, with individual changes from baseline ranging from 25% to 52%.There were congruent changes on QST after 3 common acupuncture stimulation methods, with possible unilateral as well as bilateral effects.
- Subjects :
- Adult
Male
Pain Threshold
Hot Temperature
Electroacupuncture
medicine.medical_treatment
Sensation
Sensory system
Vibration
law.invention
Randomized controlled trial
law
Physical Stimulation
Threshold of pain
Acupuncture
Humans
Medicine
Thermosensing
Acupuncture Analgesia
Cross-Over Studies
business.industry
Acupuncture analgesia
Crossover study
Electric Stimulation
Anesthesiology and Pain Medicine
Nociception
Data Interpretation, Statistical
Anesthesia
Female
business
Acupuncture Points
Subjects
Details
- ISSN :
- 00032999
- Volume :
- 110
- Database :
- OpenAIRE
- Journal :
- Anesthesia & Analgesia
- Accession number :
- edsair.doi.dedup.....2490cc1adcd6a0c707062c8c5bcd372a