Comparative Study Between Acupuncture And Acupuncture Combined With Blood-pricking Therapy On Relieving The Pain Of Compression Fracture Of Vertebrae

Background of the studyAs elderly population increase, osteoporosis which is the common degenerative diseases seen in the elderly, and osteoporotic fracture, have become a serious social problem and drawn extensive attention from all society. Not only increasing the suffering of patients with severe restrictions in physical activities, osteoporotic fracture even shortens life-span. With back pain as its main clinical symptom, the compression fracture of vertebrae is one of the most common osteoporotic fracture.ObjectiveBy comparing the analgesic effects of two therapies, only-acupuncture therapy and acupuncture combined with blood-pricking therapy, to osteoporotic compression fracture of vertebrae, we desired to find out more about the possibility of improving clinical therapeutic effects of acupuncture by a synergistic way.MethodsIn the Nanhai Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine,60inpatients including women aged over50and men aged over55, with osteoporotic compression fracture of vertebrae were enrolled as the research objects.The60patients underwent group-stratified randomization, which broke them down into two groups:The treatment group, in which the patents were treated with acupuncture combined with blood-pricking therapy. The controlled group:in which the patents were treated with only acupuncture therapy. Each group had30Patents.The following acupoints were chosen as treating points in the two groups: Qihai-points, Guanyuan-points, Jiaji-points(double), Shenshu-points(double), Spleenshu-points(double), Dachangshu-points(double), Weizhong--oints(doubl e), aotongdian-points(double), and Ache-points. Therapy of the controlled group:pricked above-mentioned points and kept the needles under muscle tissue for20minutes. Every5minutes, and therapists performed some skil Is (twi sting and twirling, supplying and weakening). In the treatment group, blood-pricking therapy was performed on Ache-points (less than3points), Weizhong-points (double), acupoint were quick punctured with triangular needle after routine disinfection, the bleeding quantity were controlled between1and2ml, then pressed these points to stanch, acupuncture treatments on the remaining acupoints were the same as in the treatment group. The therapy in two groups was both performed on one patient every other day, three times as a treatment-course. Before and after the treatments, we were measured the following indicators of pain:1. Spontaneous pain;2.Turning pain;3.Flexor pain;4. walking pain;5. the pain caused by pressing Vertebra;6. the time of turning over in bed. The indicators of pain were synthesized into a "Pain score" for evaluating the therapeutic effects.Results1. After the treatments, the time of turning over in bed in the two groups both shortened obviously. By the comparing those before and after the treatments in each group, the differences showed statistical significance(P<0.01) in both groups, proved both treatments could alleviate the pain and improve activity2. The differences between the comparing the changes of "the time of turning over in bed" after the treatments in two groups was no significant.(P>0.05).3. By comparing the scores with "the five indicators of pain after the treatments, both of them were improved with statistical significance (P<0.01), demonstrated the efficaciousness of the treatments in both groups.4. The effective rates of two groups displayed there were no statistically significant difference (P>0.05) between them, the similarity of therapeutic effects between two groups.ConclusionOnly-acupuncture therapy and acupuncture combined with blood-pricking therapy all can obviously ease the pain of osteoporotic compression fracture of vertebrae;but after the comparison between their therapeutic effect, acupuncture combined with blood-pricking therapy is not superior to the only-acupuncture therapy.