• Journal of Acupuncture Research
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• v.25 no.2
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• pp.199-210
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• 2008

Backgrounds : Electroacupuncture(EA) is commonly used in treatment of various disease. Despite an extensive evidence-base guiding the selection of stimulation parameters, little methodologically robust research regarding the level of intensity and frequency in need to provide effective doses. Objectives : This study is evaluated effects of various intensities and frequencies of EA's stimulation at $ST_{36}$, Zusanli, with sex and age in rats. Methods : In this study, we measured the effects of EA treatment on transfer capability of small intestine in rats. Under anesthesia, two intensities, 1, 5mA with three different frequencies, 2, 50, 100Hz were applied to the groups divided with sex and age for 30minutes. Results : 1mA-2Hz, 5mA-2, 100Hz in male and 1mA-2, 50, 100Hz in female without distinction of age elicited an increasing trend in transfer capability of small intestine. In case of 2Hz in male, it showed the effects of EA without strength or weakness of stimulation and it need 100Hz stimulation additionally with age. In the groups of 1mA-2Hz, 5mA-2Hz in male and 1mA-2Hz, 1mA-100Hz, we elicited the decreasing trend with growing of weeks-old in male. Conclusions : With this result, it was suggested that we should consider a correlation of sex, age and EA's intensities, frequencies for the efficient EA.

• Journal of Acupuncture Research
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• v.24 no.5
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• pp.105-111
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• 2007

Objectives : The electroacupuncture(EA) was often used in Oriental medicine clinic and basic researches. However, there have been neither any national standard of acupuncture needles in Korea nor many studies about the property of acupuncture needles for applying electrical stimulations. Therefore we investigated the electrical corrosion property of acupuncture needles used for EA stimulation in clinic. Methods : We observed the occurrence of electrical corrosion like changes in the surface of acupuncture needles after EA stimulation with various parameters(electrical stimulation intensity, treatment duration, diameter of needle) under a light microscope. We performed EA stimulation on Baekhoe($GV_{20}$) or Joksamli($ST_{36}$) of rats with intensity of 0.025, 0.05, 0.075, 0.1, 0.25 or 0.5mA at a 10Hz frequency. Results : The electrical corrosion-like changes were found on the surface of needles when the EA stimulation was given over 0.05mA of intensity. When electrical stimulation was treated for 10min, the electrical corrosion-like changes were low, but the electrical corrosion-like changes gradually increased by the treatment duration(20, 30min). We also found that acupuncture needles of 0.2mm diameter were produced more extensive electrical corrosion-like changes than acupuncture needles of 0.3 or 0.4mm diameter by electrical stimulation. Conclusions: These results suggested that EA stimulation could produce electrical corrosion-like changes of acupuncture needles through intensity of current, duration of electric stimulation and/or diameter of needle.

• Journal of Acupuncture Research
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• v.18 no.1
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• pp.50-60
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• 2001

In order to review the studies related to the facial pain by acupuncture, we have referred to a PubMed site by using MeSH searching word of "facial pain and acupuncture". 12 journals with 20 papers were reported on the facial pain and acupuncture. Among them, 4 papers were appeared in Am J Chin Med, 3 in Acupunct Electrother Res, 2 in Br. Dent J, J Orofac Pain and Swed Dent J respectively, and 1 in 7 journals respectively. According to the classification of the patterns, 15 papers were done by clinical studies, 2 by review and meta-analysis respectively, and 1 by experimental study. TMD was the most disease that related to facial pain and CMD, neurogenic facial pain (trigeminal neuralgia, postherpetic pain), dental pain and MPS were also appeared. Most of the studies didn't mention the acupuncture points, L14 Habkok in 4 papers and ST36 Chogsamni in a paper were only mentioned. Various modalities were applied in the trials such as classical acupuncture, electroacupuncture, TENS, SSP and auricular acupuncture. By the above results, we concluded that various acupuncture techniques are used with effectiveness on the facial pain. It would be needed further research on the acupuncture point specific and therapeutic techniques as well.

• The Journal of Internal Korean Medicine
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• v.41 no.1
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• pp.29-43
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• 2020

Objectives: The purpose of this study was to summarize current research trends and results regarding acupuncture treatment for hypertension. Methods: Articles published from 2009 to 2019 were searched on domestic databases (OASIS, NDSL, RISS) and PubMed using the keywords 'Hypertension', 'Hypertensive', 'Acupuncture', 'EA' (electroacupuncture), 'Autonomic nervous system', 'ANS', 'CVD' (cardiovascular disease), '고혈압', '침', '전침', and '자율신경계'. The studies were analyzed according to the year, type of study (domestic or foreign articles, nationality of the first author), acupuncture type for human and animal studies, BP (blood pressure) measurement, and acupuncture intervention. Results: In total, 21 articles were selected. There were 8 randomized controlled trials (RCTs), 3 non-randomized controlled trials (nRCTs), 2 before-after studies, 1 case series, and 7 animal studies. Manual acupuncture (11 articles) was most frequently used, and ST36 (足三里) was most frequently used in human studies. In 18 of 21 articles, acupuncture was reported as effective in lowering systolic blood pressure (SBP) or diastolic blood pressure (DBP) in hypertensive patients. Conclusions: Acupuncture treatment for hypertension is deemed useful. Further studies are necessary for application of acupuncture therapy in clinical practice.

• The Journal of Internal Korean Medicine
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• v.42 no.4
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• pp.718-726
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• 2021

This study presents a case of add-on traditional Korean medical treatments in a 77-year-old male patient with uncontrolled type 2 diabetes mellitus with conventional oral hypoglycemic agents. Chief complaints were uncontrolled glucose level and weight loss. The patient was treated with electroacupuncture (on ST36, CV4, and CV12), herbal medication, and lifestyle advice. The conventional oral hypoglycemic medications were maintained. After 12 weeks, the glycated hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) decreased from 11.0% to 8.4%. There were significant abnormalities in the liver function and renal function tests, but no adverse event was reported. Further studies are needed to confirm the findings of this case.

• Journal of Acupuncture Research
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• v.26 no.2
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• pp.125-145
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• 2009

Objectives : To analyze the inclusion criteria of participants, control group interventions, and the results of prior studies of acupuncture for OA. Also to identify aspects of the procedure that are associated with positive outcomes in order to establish ideal acupuncture treatment model. And to assess the methodological quality of the trials with modified Jadad score and FEAS in order to evaluate the quality of prior studies and find out whether or not acupuncture has a positive effect in treating OA. Methods : Articles up to the date of November 2008 were searched via computerized databases of PubMed, Journal of Korean Oriental Medicine, The Journal of Korean Acupuncture & Moxibustion Society and Journal of Oriental Rehabilitation Medicine. Bibliographies of reviewed papers were also searched and reviewed. Only randomized controlled trials (RCTs) and systematic reviews concerning the effects of acupuncture or electroacupuncture (EA) on symptoms of osteoarthritis of the human knee, published in English and Korean were included. The acupuncture treatment methods of the reviewed trials were assessed based on STRICTA. And the methodological quality of the trials was assessed by modified Jadad score and FEAS. Results : Twenty one trials of acupuncture for OA were analyzed. Based on the results of this review the following factors might contribute to optimal results from acupuncture treatment. 1) Usage of $ST_{35}$, $GB_{34$, $EX_{32}$, $ST_{36}$ and $SP_9$ acupuncture points. 2) More than four acupuncture points should be used. 3) More than 15 minutes of needle retention time. 4) Needle length-40mm and diameter-0.30mm 5) Usage of EA 6) more than 10 times treatment 7) Treatment frequency of more than once a week, 8) Treatment duration longer than 6 to 8 weeks. Conclusions : High quality clinical trials of Acupuncture for OA is still in lack. Future investigators must concentrate their attentions on the quality of acupuncture treatment itself used in the trials as well as the methodological quality of trials.

• Korean Journal of Acupuncture
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• v.34 no.1
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• pp.47-55
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• 2017

Objectives : The purpose of this study is to evaluate the feasibility of further acupuncture research as an effective alternative and safe treatment for abdominal pain control in patients with pancreatitis. Methods and Results : This study is an open-label, assessment-blind, parallel designed pilot clinical trial. Thirty participants will be assigned to the acupuncture group(n=15) and usual care group(n=15). All patients will receive the conventional standard-of-care(SOC) therapy, but only the experimental group will receive acupuncture therapy six times a week, and the duration of acupuncture therapy will be held up to 12 weeks or until the pains are to be resolved. For the conventional SOC therapy, painkiller will be given. In treatment group, the subjects will receive the identical SOC therapy in combination with electroacupuncture therapy on twelve acupuncture points(LI4, PC6, SP6, GB39, ST36, ST37), and auricular acupuncture therapy on five auricular acupuncture points(Sympathetic, Shen Men, Abdomen, Pancreas gall, and Spleen). The primary outcome will be measured using the visual analogue scale(VAS), and the secondary outcome will be measured using the painkiller demand, quality of life index and severity of pancreatitis by abdominal computed tomography(CT). Assessments will be made at baseline and at week 1, 4, 8 and 12. Results of abdominal CT will be evaluated at baseline and at week 12. Conclusions : The result of this trial will provide a basis for the effectiveness and safety of acupuncture treatment for abdominal pain in patients with pancreatitis.

• The Journal of Internal Korean Medicine
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• v.40 no.3
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• pp.409-424
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• 2019

Objectives: This research aimed to confirm the efficacy of oriental medicine in sixth cranial nerve palsy and to evaluate the quality of the studies. Methods: Using the medical subject heading (MeSH) keywords "abducens nerve palsy", "abducens nerve paralysis", "sixth nerve palsy", "herbal medicine", "Chinese medicine", "oriental medicine" and "acupuncture", we collected the research papers through an electronic database search in Oriental Medicine Advanced Searching Integrated System (OASIS), National Discovery for Science Leaders (NDSL), PubMed, Cochran Library, and China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI). Results: A total of 136 papers were searched from the databases. Among these, 15 case reports and 8 randomized controlled trials (RCTs) met our criteria. 17 articles were found on the use of acupuncture as the main intervention, 11 on the use of herbal medicine as the main intervention, and 9 on the use of electroacupuncture as the main intervention. The frequently used acupoints were LI4, EX-HN5, GB1, BL2, TE23, LR3, BL1, ST2, GB20, and ST36. All 23 studies confirmed the efficacy of Korean medicine. According to the assessment using the risk of bias, the overall quality of the RCTs was low. Conclusions: Twenty-three papers suggested that Korean medicine treatment for abducens nerve palsy was effective in many cases. Analyzing the potential bias was difficult.

• The Journal of Traditional Korean Medicine
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• v.15 no.1
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• pp.113-127
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• 2006

Objectives: This study was produced to examine the effects of moxibustion that had been played important role to traditional oriental medical treatment on disease. Recently, it was reported that moxi-tar which is generated in the process of moxibustion as burning combustibles decreased nitric oxide(NO) and inducible NO synthase (iNOS) generation in cellular experiments. Methods: Carrageenan-induced arthritis rat model was used to test the effect of moxi-tar as a chronic pain model. Diluted moxi-tar was single injected in several acupoints or combined with electroacupuncture (l ms, 2 Hz, and 2 mA) into contralateral ST36 acupoint for 30 min to assess the synergic effects. After the treatment, behavioral tests measuring stepping force were periodically conducted during the next 12 hours. Endogenous NO and iNOS, cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2), and c-Fos protein expression in the spinal cord were examined on a rat model of carrageenan-induced arthritis. Results : After the induction of arthritis, rats subsequently showed a reduced stepping force of the affected limb for at least the next 4 days. The reduced stepping force of the limb was presumably due to a painful knee, since oral injection of indomethacin produced temporary improvement of weight bearing. Maxi-tar produced significant improvement of stepping force of the hindlimb affected by the arthritis lasting at least 9 hours. The magnitude of this improvement was equivalent to that obtained after an oral injection of 3 mg/kg of indomethacin and this improvement of stepping force was interpreted as an analgesic effect. Maxi-tar produced the improvement of stepping force of the affected hindlimb in a dose-dependent manner. Both NO production and iNOS, COX-2 protein expression increased by arthritis were suppressed by maxi-tar. Moxi-tar on combination with electroacupuncture (EA) produced more powerful and longer lasting improvement of stepping force of the hindlimb affected by the arthritis than either moxi-tar or EA did. Conclusion : The present study suggest that maxi-tar produces a potent analgesic effect on the chronic knee arthritis pain model in the rat and that moxi-tar-induced analgesia modulate endogenous NO through the suppression of iNOS/COX-2 protein expression.

• Journal of Korean Medicine Rehabilitation
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• v.24 no.1
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• pp.119-123
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• 2014

The purpose of this study is to report the effect of combined acupuncture treatment on acute ankle sprain patients. The subjects included in this study were 15 acute ankle sprain patients who visited Jaseng Hospital of Korean Medicine from Oct. 15th, 2012 to Feb. 8th, 2013. We treated 15 patients with combined acupuncture treatment. The treatment consisted of Hwangrunhaedok-tang (Huanglianjiedutang) pharmacupuncture, electroacupuncture (applied to GB39, ST36 on the affected side), acupuncture (applied to TE17, SI6 on the unaffected side with Dong-Qi therapy). To assess the effect of treatment, the numeric rating scale (NRS) was applied before and after treatment. After first combined acupuncture treatment, the NRS scores significantly decreased from $8.33{\pm}0.94$ to $2.26{\pm}0.44$ (p<0.01). We suggested that Combined acupuncture treatment are effective and useful on acute ankle sprain. And, further studies will be needed.