Masato Egawa

The effect of acupuncture in the treatment of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

OBJECTIVE Many claims have been made regarding the therapeutic efficacy of acupuncture. However, most controlled clinical studies have been limited to treatment of pain-related disorders and do not provide objective, quantifiable data for analysis. Traditional acupuncture has been applied to chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). However, only a few studies have been performed to determine the efficacy of this treatment. This study was conducted to determine whether a combination of traditional acupuncture treatment and conservative treatment for COPD improves dyspnea on exercise. METHODS This was a prospective trial with matched-pair parallel groups of patients from the departments of respiratory internal medicine of Gifu University of Medicine, Meiji University of Oriental Medicine, and Gifu Red Cross Hospital, Japan. Thirty patients were divided into the acupuncture group (n = 15) and the control group (n = 15). The control group received conservative treatment with medication only. The acupuncture group received acupuncture treatments once a week for 10 weeks, in addition to conservative treatment with medication. The main outcome measure was the Modified Borg dyspnea scale after the 6-minute walk test. RESULTS The acupuncture group had significantly better results on the Borg scale than the control group after 10 weeks (2.2 +/- 2.7 versus 6.4 +/- 3.4, p = 0.0001, 95% confidence interval, -5.10 to -2.35, paired t-test). The 6-minute walk distance and oxygen saturation at the minimum rate improved significantly in the acupuncture group compared with the control group. CONCLUSIONS This study demonstrated that acupuncture contributed to the reduction of COPD-related dyspnea on exercise in 15 matched-pair parallel subjects.

Combined standard medication and acupuncture for COPD: a case series

Background Traditional acupuncture has been used in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). However, only a few studies have been performed to determine the efficacy of this treatment. Objective To observe changes in the symptoms of COPD during acupuncture treatment in patients with COPD stratified according to the severity of the disease. Methods A prospective case series of 26 patients with dyspnoea on exertion due to COPD was followed from October 2004 to October 2008 in the Departments of Respiratory Internal Medicine, Gifu University of Medicine and Meiji University of Integrative Medicine, Japan. All participants received acupuncture treatments once a week for 10 weeks in addition to standard medication therapy. The main outcome measure was the modified Borg dyspnoea scale after the 6 min walk test (6MWT) and the secondary outcome measure was the BODE index. Results All 26 patients showed significant improvement in the Borg dyspnoea scale after 10 weeks of acupuncture treatment (from 4.02 (2.85) to 1.96 (1.97), mean difference −2.06, 95% CI −3.03 to −1.09, p=0.0002, paired t test). Improvements in the BODE index, 6MWT and oxygen saturation during exercise, which indicates better reduced dyspnoea on exertion and prognosis, were also found. Conclusion The results of this study suggest that acupuncture treatment has clinically useful effects, at least in the short term, in reducing dyspnoea on exercise in patients with COPD, particularly in those more severely affected.

Use of alternative therapy in patients with Parkinson's Disease: A questionnaire-based study

light reflex was measured by means of video-pupillography. Evaluated items included initial pupil diameter (D1), contraction ratio of pupils (CR), maximum velocity of miosis (VC), maximum velocity of mydriasis (VD) and recovery time, defined as re-dilatation to 63% frommaximum constriction (T5). The results were compared with control data measured when nothing had been inserted between the teeth. A statistically significant increase in VAS was observed starting from the 3-hour point, with themaximumvalue observed at 9 h. Significant increaseswere also seen in D1, CR, VC, VD and T5. There were positive correlations between VAS andCR andVC and evenVD. Our results show that diurnal variations in the autonomic nervous system affected the pain caused by tooth movement, and we found that such pain had an inhibitory effect on parasympathetic nerves while it activated sympathetic nerves. (The Autonomic Nervous System, 50: 306-312, 2013).

Evidence in Safety Issue of Acupuncture (1)

鍼灸臨床で行われている安全性に関する知識や手順には、科学的根拠に乏しい逸話や思い込みも含まれている。鍼灸の安全性を向上させるためには、エビデンスがどれくらい蓄積しているかを整理し、吟味し、活用することが重要である。全日本鍼灸学会研究部安全性委員会では、現在までに報告されている鍼灸の安全管理に関連する研究成果をレビューする作業を開始した。2004年度に取り上げたテーマは次のとおりである : 1. 鍼灸学校における安全性教育と損害賠償の現状2. 手洗いと手指消毒法3. 施術野の消毒法4. 刺鍼から抜鍼までの操作5. 安全な刺鍼深度6. 施術環境の衛生この作業で明らかになった知識や疑問が、学校教育、日常臨床、マニュアル作成、および研究に反映されることを望んでいる。

The effect of acupuncture stimulation to the bilateral quchi points on insulin secretion.

曲池穴刺激の血清インスリン分泌への影響を調べるために, 両側曲池穴に, 1cm直刺刺入を行った置鍼刺激群, 通電刺激を加えた通電刺激群, さらには2群に対し経穴コントロールとして曲池穴より外側に1.5cm離した部位の置鍼刺激群, 通電刺激群, 無刺激群の5群に対しブドウ糖負荷試験を行い, 血糖値, 血清インスリン値を測定した。結果は両側曲池置鍼刺激群が負荷後30分において血清インスリン値が有意に高値を示し, また血清インスリン値の総和も有意に高値を示した。この事より両側曲池穴に対する置鍼刺激がインスリン分泌を亢進させることが示唆された。