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Effect and Potential Mechanism of Electroacupuncture Add-On Treatment in Patients with Parkinson's Disease

First author:Fang Wang

Corresponding author:Wei Zhang

Electroacupuncture Add-On Treatment Parkinson Dise

essential_information

  • Person in charge:Fang Wang
  • Data Sources: OTHERS
  • Number of papers:OTHERS20190339
  • Published time:2015-08-13

2015-08-13

Published articles

Journal:Evidence-Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine

Publication type: Original Article

IF(IF): 2.629

PMID: 26351515 Link To Pubmed Full text Download

Background And Purpose

Method

Fifty PD patients were randomly assigned to drug plus EA (D + EA) group and drug alone (D) group. Subjects in D + EA group received stimulation in points of bilateral fengfu, fengchi, hegu, and central dazhui. Participants were evaluated by scales for motor and nonmotor symptoms. Levels of neuroinflammatory factors and neurotransmitters in serum were detected.

Conclusion

EA add-on treatment is effective on most motor symptoms and some nonmotor symptoms and is particularly efficacious in PD patients at early stage. Antineuroinflammation may be a mechanism of EA add-on treatment.

Main results

EA add-on treatment remarkably reduced scores of Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale (UPDRS) III and its subitems of tremor, rigidity, and bradykinesia and conspicuously decreased UPDRS III scores in patients with bradykinesia-rigidity and mixed types and mild severity. Depression and sleep disturbances were eased, which were reflected by decreased scores of Hamilton Depression Rating Scale, Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index, and elevated noradrenaline level. Effects of EA add-on treatment on motor symptoms and sleep disturbances were superior to drug alone treatment, markedly improving life quality of PD patients. EA add-on treatment decreased nitric oxide level in serum.