Electro-acupuncture & Chronic Colitis
abstracted & translated by
Honora Lee Wolfe, Lic. Ac., FNAAOM (USA)
Keywords: Chinese medicine, acupuncture, electro-acupuncture, gastyroenterology, chronic colitis
On page 37 of issue #9, 2004 of Gan Su Zhong Yi (Gansu Chinese Medicine), Ma Hai-ying published an article titled, “A Report on the Treatment of 20 Cases of Chronic Colitis with Spirit Damp Illumination Combined with Electro-acupuncture. A summary of this study is presented below.
Cohort description:
There were 11 males and nine females enrolled in this study. The youngest was 21 years old and the oldest was 65. These patients had suffered from colitis for from 1-5 years. No other description of these patients was offered.
Treatment method:
Patients were needled at Tian Shu (St 25), Zhong Wan (CV 12), Guan Yuan (CV 4), and Zu San Li (St 36, bilaterally). These needles were inserted 1.5 inches deep. After obtaining the qi, they were attached to a BT701-B type electro-acupuncture machine and stimulated with a continuous wave to the degree that the patient could bear. At the same time, Shen Jue (CV 8) was treated with “spirit lamp illunitation.” My assumption is that this is a form of infra-red heat lamp. The lamp was positioned 30cm above Shen Jue. Treatment last 30 minutes each time, was done once per day, and 12 treatments equaled one course.
Study outcomes:
Cure was defined as complete disappearance of symptoms as well as a return to normal. Improvement was defined as disappearance of abdominal pain and normal bowel movements after three courses of treatment. Based on these criteria, 16 cases were cured and four cases improved. Therefore, the total effectiveness was 100%.
Discussion:
According to Dr. Ma, the purpose of the electro-acupuncture and the heat therapy at Shen Jue were to supplement vacuity and support the righteous, regulate the spleen and stomach and rectify the lower burner, boost the fire of the life-gate, warm the center and scatter cold, and thus improving the rottening and ripening of water and grains. Readers should note, however, that Dr. Ma did have to treat every day for at least 12 days and, in some cases, for 36 days in order to achieve these impressive results.
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