Perioperative acupuncture modulation: more than anaesthesia.

ABSTRACT

Accumulated evidences from clinical trials and updated reviews suggest that the role of acupuncture in perioperative medicine extends beyond the classical scope of anaesthesia and has been underestimated. Perioperative acupuncture reduces not only the consumption of anaesthetics and analgesics, but also anaesthesia-related complications, and protects organs in the perioperative period. These beneficial effects make acupuncture a promising approach in perioperative management, especially with respect to enhanced surgery recovery and specific surgical populations, such as elderly patients and 'triple-low' patients. Furthermore, efforts have been made to optimize the clinical application of perioperative acupuncture.