If electroshock therapy and
acupuncture had a love child, you'd expect it to be the
darling of alternative therapy junkies. However, electro-acupuncture
is garnering mainstream accolades. According to a study
published in the October issue of Anesthesia and Analgesia,
electro-acupoint stimulation is effective in controlling
postoperative nausea and vomiting (PONV).
PONV is among the top five most
undesirable outcomes following general anesthesia. However,
antiemetic medicine, administered to treat PONV, also
has unpleasant side effects including headache, abdominal
pain and hypotension.
In order to discover if electro-acupuncture
could provide PONV relief without medication's unwelcome
side effects, researchers from Duke University in Durham,
North Carolina, sorted patients about to undergo breast
cancer surgery into three treatment groups. Twenty-six
patients received electro-acupoint stimulation, 25 were
given ondansetron, an antiemetic drug, and 24 were assigned
to a placebo group. All patients were fitted with an
electrical stimulation unit by an acupuncturist before
surgery and were told that they may or may not feel
the current. The device was removed before the patients
awoke.
Patients in the electro-acupuncture
group received alternating 2 and 100Hz currents to the
acupressure point, located on the wrist just below the
palm. The two frequencies of electrical current have
complementary analgesic effects. Low frequency stimulation
causes the release of endorphins, resulting in a slow-onset
but longer-lasting analgesic effect. High frequency
stimulation, on the other hand, releases enkephalins
for rapid pain relief that fades quickly.
According to lead investigator
Dr Tong Joo Gan, "electro-acupuncture enhances or heightens
the effects of traditional acupuncture." In addition,
"in the busy and complicated setting of the operating
room, the electro-acupuncture device is much more convenient
to use."
Two hours after surgery, the lack
of nausea, vomiting or the need for rescue antiemetic
medication was achieved in 77% of electro-acupoint patients,
64% of ondansetron patients and 42% of the placebo group.
Twenty-four hours after surgery, 73% of subjects on
electro-acupuncture, 52% on the antiemetic drug and
38% of placebo patients remained PONV-free.
Not only did electro-acupoint stimulation
reduce nausea and vomiting, it also provided pain relief.
Fewer patients in the electro-acupuncture group reported
severe postoperative pain and most rated their pain
levels below those of the other groups.
So it seems, in the words of Dr
Gan, that "in the areas of PONV control, pain relief
and general overall satisfaction, acupuncture appears
to be more effective than the most commonly used medication,
with few to no side effects."
Although it's unclear exactly how
acupuncture works, it has the endorsement of the US
National Institute of Health. This study confirmed electro-acupoint
stimulation's effectiveness and demonstrated that it
can be used as a safe preventative measure to reduce
post-surgical discomfort.
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