Abstract
Objectives The purpose of this study is to investigate the current acupuncture therapy of cerebral palsy. Methods We investigated the Chinese clinical papers which were published in the last 10 years(from 1999 to 2008). We found these papers from the oriental medical library in university and we also used the China National Knowledge Infrastructure(CNKI) through the internet and selected 32 papers for analyzing. Results Most papers were described the effect of acupuncture or acupoint-injection. This is more effective way to treat than the general rehabilitation treatment such as the physical therapy, the occupational therapy, and the speech therapy. Acupuncture or acupoint-injection has overall $80{\sim}100%$ of rehabilitation rate. The younger the children were, the longer the treatment period was, and the more successful in treatment. The acupuncture was often used with the general acupuncture and scalp acupuncture. Commonly used major acupuncture points were sishencong(四神聰), bohui(百會), zusanli(足三里), yundongqu(運動區), pinghengqu(平衡區), quchi(曲池), and sanyinjiao(三陰交). Commonly used main meridian pathways were bladder, governor vessel, gallbladder, large intestine, stomach, small intestine meridian. Head is the common site for acupuncture. The main acupoint-injection points were zusanli(足三里), dazhui(大椎), shenshu(腎兪), yamen(啞門), neiguan(內關), and fengchi(風池). For the injection, brain activator, ganglioside M1, cerebroprotein hydrolysate, cytidine diphosphate choline, Vit B1, Vit B12, the salviae root, the safflower were commonly used. Conclusions Acupuncture and acupoint-injection have been shown as an effective treatment on cerebral palsy. The acupuncture was used often the general acupuncture and scalp acupuncture all together. Commonly used main acupuncture points were sishencong, bohui, zusanli, yundongqu, pinghengqu, quchi, sanyinjiao.
