OBJECTIVETo observe therapeutic effects of different needle-retained durations at scalp acupoints on Tourette syndrome (TS).

METHODSSixty-two cases of TS were randomly divided into an observation group and a control group, 31 cases in each group. In the observation group, the needles were retained for 2 h and in the control group, they were retained for 30 min. The middle line of forehead, middle line of vertex and lateral line 1 of vertex were selected as main acupoints, and anterior oblique line of vertex-temporal and posterior temporal line were selected as adjuvant acupoints. They were treated for 2 months, once other day. Yale Global Tic Severity Scale (YGTSS) and Tourette Syndrome Global Scale (TSGS) were used for assessment of therapeutic effects and their therapeutic effects were compared.

RESULTSAfter treatment, YGTSS and TSGS scores had very significant changes in the two groups as compared with those before treatment (both P < 0.01), indicating an obvious improvement in kinetic Tic and vocalizing Tic. The total effective rate was 61.3% in the observation group and 67.7% in the control group with no significant difference between the two groups (P > 0.05).

CONCLUSIONScalp acupuncture therapy of both 2 h and 0.5 h retaining needle can significantly improve symptoms of TS patients, with a similar therapeutic effect.