Prospect of value and application of transcutaneous electrical acupoint stimulation to control blood pressure in proactive healthcare perspective. / 主动健康视域下经皮穴位电刺激调控血压的价值与应用展望.

Hypertension is a global problem threatening human health and life. Although there are many antihypertensive drugs, the low compliance of medication affects its efficacy, and the effect in regulating hypertension has become increasingly prominent. Focusing on the new trend of proactive healthcare management, in the present paper, we made a summary about the status and existing problems of transcutaneous electrical acupoint stimulation (TEAS) in the regulation of blood pressure, and put forward some suggestions, such as selecting acupoints based on classical acupuncture theory to highlight the advantages of TEAS to control blood pressure as a whole, optimizing and screening the parameters of TEAS in the regulation of blood pressure, expanding the research observation indexes etc. We also made a prospect about its future application, hoping to provide new ideas for the proactive regulation, whole-process regulation and integrated regulation of blood pressure.

Electrophysiological mechanisms of motion-style scalp acupuncture for treating poststroke spasticity in rats. / è¿åŠ¨å¤´é’ˆæ³•æŠ—å’ä¸­åŽç—‰æŒ›æ•ˆåº”çš„ç”µç”Ÿç†æœºåˆ¶ç ”ç©¶.

OBJECTIVES: To observe the effect of motion-style scalp acupuncture (MSSA) on H-reflex in rats with post-stroke spasticity (PSS), so as to explore the electrophysiological mechanisms of MSSA against spasticity. METHODS: A total of 36 male SD rats were randomly divided into sham operation, model and MSSA groups, with 12 rats in each group. The stroke model was established by occlusion of the middle cerebral artery. After modeling, rats in the MSSA group were treated by scalp acupuncture (manipulated every 15 min, 200 r/min) at ipsilesional "parietal and temporal anterior oblique line" (MS6) for a total of 30 min, the treadmill training (10 m/min) was applied during the needling retention, once daily for consecutive 7 days. The neurological deficits, muscle tone and motor function were assessed by Zea Longa score, modified modified Ashworth scale (MMAS) score and screen test score before and after treatment, respectively. The H-reflex of spastic muscle was recorded by electrophysiological recordings and the frequency dependent depression (FDD) of H-reflex was also recorded. The cerebral infarction volume was evaluated by TTC staining. RESULTS: Compared with the sham operation group, the Zea longa score, MMAS score, cerebral infarction volume, motion threshold, Hmax/Mmax ratio and FDD of H-reflex were significantly increased (P<0.01), while the screen test score was significantly decreased (P<0.01) in the model group. Intriguingly, compared with the model group, the above results were all reversed (P<0.01) in the MSSA group. CONCLUSIONS: MSSA could exert satisfactory anti-spastic effects in rats with PSS, the underlying mechanism may be related to the improvement of nerve function injury, the reduction of spastic muscle movement threshold, Hmax/Mmax ratio and H-reflex FDD.

Biofeedback physical regulation of hypertension based on acupoints: A clinical trial.

BACKGROUND: Hypertension is a predominant risk factor for cardiovascular disease and has imposed a global disease burden. Poor medication compliance is the major obstacle to antihypertensive drug therapy, and negative mood status is also detrimental to blood pressure (BP) management. While transcutaneous electrical acupoint stimulation (TEAS), as an electrical stimulation modality for biofeedback physical regulation based on acupoints, offers a such nondrug alternative option that is noninvasive, safe, and effective with high adherence. However, the optimal stimulation parameters of TEAS for hypertension remain unclear, especially the frequency, which needs further exploration. OBJECTIVE: The study aims to investigate the efficacy of TEAS for hypertension, and to screen the optimal electrical stimulation frequency. METHODS: This is an 8-week, randomized, controlled pilot trial with 3 parallel groups. In a ratio of 1:1:1, 120 patients with stage 1 hypertension will be divided into the TEAS-2Hz group, TEAS-10Hz group, or usual care group. All patients will receive the usual care for hypertension including lifestyle education, etc. Additionally, the 2 TEAS groups will receive 12 sessions of TEAS interventions at 2 Hz or 10 Hz, 3 times weekly for 30 minutes each, with 4 weeks of follow-up. The main outcome will be the change from baseline to week 4 in systolic BP among the groups. Secondary outcomes consist of changes in diastolic BP, mean arterial pressure, heart rate, heart rate variability, medication adherence, and quality of life. The safety outcomes will be any adverse event during the treatment. DISCUSSION: As a pre-study for the next large clinical trial of TEAS for hypertension, this study will offer references for optimized frequency of biofeedback electrical devices and promote more consciousness of the benefits of body-mind holistic regulation of BP, thereby achieving proactive and overall process management of BP.

The factors affecting neurogenesis after stroke and the role of acupuncture.

Stroke induces a state of neuroplasticity in the central nervous system, which can lead to neurogenesis phenomena such as axonal growth and synapse formation, thus affecting stroke outcomes. The brain has a limited ability to repair ischemic damage and requires a favorable microenvironment. Acupuncture is considered a feasible and effective neural regulation strategy to improve functional recovery following stroke via the benign modulation of neuroplasticity. Therefore, we summarized the current research progress on the key factors and signaling pathways affecting neurogenesis, and we also briefly reviewed the research progress of acupuncture to improve functional recovery after stroke by promoting neurogenesis. This study aims to provide new therapeutic perspectives and strategies for the recovery of motor function after stroke based on neurogenesis.