• The Journal of Korean Medicine
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• v.19 no.2
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• pp.5-16
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• 1998

Hwabyung is a common emotional disorder which has symptoms expressed like firt's explosion in middle-aged after long period of emotional suppression among Koreans. It is similar in its characteristics such as neurosis, anxiety, panic attacks in Western Medicine, though the treatment method was not effective. So we have done a clinical research on Oriental Medical Method, especially on Acupuncture Therapy, and obtained following results. 1. Patients with Hwabyung complained of pressure pain around the Chunjung(?中, CV-17) point distinctively. About 70% of those were located on the CV-17 point, 25% were 1cm upper than the CV-17 point and 5% of those were 1cm lower point than the CV-17 point. 2. Degrees of pressure pain were divided into 5 grades from ade 1(feeling pain with slight pressure) to grade 5(feeling no pain with severe pressure), respectively. 3. Patients with Hwabyung showed various symptoms compared to fire's explosion such as anger, chest discomfort, difficulty in breathing. tachycardia. and feeling of epigasfric mass etc., and the degrees were divided into 5 grades according to the severities from grade 1(can't keep their usual living) to grade 5(no complaints with heavy stresses), respectively. 4. For the treatment of Hwabyung in this study, we had given Acupuncture therapy on some points such as Chunjung:?中:CV-17, Jungwan:中脘:CV-12) and Chunchu:天樞:S-25, etc. for 15 minutes a time twice a week. And Bunshimkiumgmnihang(分心氣飮加味方) was administered 3 times a day. 5. About 40% of the patients took treatment for more than 2 months, 29% of those took 1 to 2 months and 31% of those took less than 1 month. In this study, we excluded those who stopped treatment within a month without any expected effects. 6. We evaluated the changes of severity of pain according to the following categories such as - for no change, + for 1 grade, ++ for 2 grades, +++ for 3 grades, and ++++ for 4 grades of improvements. Among the patients taken 1 to 2 months of treatment. 48% of the those showed +, 7% of those showed ++, 3% of those showed +++ and 41% of those showed no change. Among the patients taken less than 2 months of treatment, 20%of those showed +, 40% of those showed ++, 28% of those showed +++ and 13% of those showed no change. 7. We evaluate the changes of symptoms according to the following categories such as - for no change, + for 1 grade, ++ for 2 grades, +++ for 3 grades and +++ for 4 grades of improvements. Among the patients taken 1 to 2 months of treatment, 34% of those showed +, 14% of those showed ++ and 52% of those showed no change. Among the patients taken more than 2 months of treatment, 20% of those showed +, 43% of those showed 20% of those showed +++, 3% of those showed +++ and 15% of those showed no change. 8. When we compare the changes of pain and symptoms according to the periods of treatment, the changes in quantity of pain in 1 to 2 months group was $0.72{\pm}0.75$, in more than 2 months group was $1.83{\pm}0.98$, and the changes in quantity of symptoms in 1 to 2 months group was $0.62{\pm}0.73$, in more than 2 months group was $1.75{\pm}1.03$. According to the above results, we have concluded that more than 2 months of treatment is more beneficial than 1 to 2 months of treatment.