OBJECTIVETo observe the difference of the therapeutic effect of acupuncture at Jiaji (EX-B 2) combined with superficial needling for lumbar disc herniation (LDH) and to explore the synergy effect between acupuncture at Jiaji (EX-B 2) and superficial needling.

METHODSSixty patients with LDH were randomly divided into an observation group and a control group, 30 cases in each group. The observation group was treated with superficial needling at the corresponding myofascial fasciae trigger point (MTrP) and leave the plastic tube in the body for 6 hours, and then acupuncture at Jiaji (EX-B 2) and the needle was remained for 30 min. The control group was treated with superficial needling simply. Both groups were treated once daily, five days in succession with 2 days interval, 10 times constituting a treating course for 2 courses. The average onset time of analgesic effect and the effect-lasting time after the first treatment were observed. The mean pain scores after the first treatment and after two treatment courses were compared by McGill pain inquire scale.

RESULTSThere was no significant difference in the average onset time of the two groups [(5.10 +/- 3.70) min vs (5.93 +/- 5.09) min, P > 0.05]. But the effect-lasting time of (13.00 +/- 6.90) h in the observation group was longer than that of (6.27 +/- 3.98) h in the control group (P < 0.01). Compared with the scores of Pain Rating Index (PRI), Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) and Present Pain Intensity (PPI) after the first treatment, there were no significant statistical differences between the two groups (all P > 0.05). But the same comparison after 2 treating courses showed that the scores of PRI, VAS and PPI in the observation group were lower than the control group (all P < 0.01).

CONCLUSIONAcupuncture at Jiaji (EX-B 2) can extend the analgesic time and enhance the analgesic effect of the superficial needling.

Acupuncture Analgesia ; Acupuncture Points ; Adult ; Aged ; Aged, 80 and over ; Back Pain ; therapy ; Female ; Humans ; Intervertebral Disc Displacement ; therapy ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Time Factors ; Young Adult

OBJECTIVETo explore possible mechanism of electroacupuncture (EA) for regulating immune function in anxiety disorder (AD) rats by observing the effect of acupuncture on the histology of thymus and expressions of atrial natriuretic peptide (ANP) and natriuretic peptide receptor type A (NPR- A) in thymus.

METHODSTotally 34 SD healthy rats were randomly divided into the blank control group (n = 10), the model group (n = 12), the EA group (n = 12). Anxiety model was established in rats of the model group and the EA group by using chronic unpredictable stress (CUS) stimulation. EA (15/25 Hz) at Neiguan (PC6) and Shenmen (HT7) was performed in the EA group, with 15-min needle retaining, once every other day, 15 days in total. Needle was fixed at same acupoints for 15 min without electric stimulus in the other two groups. Anxiety-like behavior was measured by elevated plus-maze (EPM) test. Pathological changes of thymus tissue were observed by optical microscope. Expressions of ANP and NPR-A in thymus were measured by immunohistochemical assay.

RESULTSThe thymus tissue in the model group was severely atrophied, with unclear structure of thymic lobules, unclear margin of thymic medulla, loosely arranged lymphocytes ,and obviously enlarged volume of thymic corpuscle. The thymus tissue in the EA group was mildly atrophied, with existent structure of thymic lobules, clear margin of thymic medulla, densely arranged lymphocytes in cortical region, and widened medullary area. Com- pared with the blank control group, the percentage of open-arms entries (OE%) in the total QE times ob- viously decreased in the model group (P < 0.05), ANP expression obviously increased (P < 0.05), and NPR-A expression obviously decreased (P < 0.01). Compared with the model group, OE% was obviously elevated (P < 0.05), ANP expression obviously decreased (P < 0.05), and NPR-A expression obviously increased (P < 0.01) in the EA group.

CONCLUSIONEA not only could reduce anxiety of rats, but also could improve chronic stress induced thymus injury through intervening synthesis and secretion of ANP, as well as the expression of NPR-A (a specific receptor of ANP).

Acupuncture Points ; Animals ; Anxiety Disorders ; therapy ; Atrial Natriuretic Factor ; metabolism ; Electroacupuncture ; Random Allocation ; Rats ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley ; Receptors, Atrial Natriuretic Factor ; metabolism ; Thymus Gland ; pathology

This study was purposed to investigate the ratio of Th17 cells and CD4(+)CD25(+)Foxp3(+) regulatory T (Treg) cells in peripheral blood of patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) and to explore their roles in the pathogenesis and clinical diagnosis. Based on the number of peripheral lymphocytes and treatment condition, the CLL patients were divided into 2 groups: untreated group (n = 30) and remission group (n = 15), the healthy control group (n = 20) was set up as well. The frequencies of Th17 and Treg cells of all cases were detected by flow cytometry (FCM). The results showed that frequencies of CD3(+)CD4(+)T cells and Th17 cells were significantly higher in untreated group than that in healthy control group (P < 0.05), the frequencies of CD3(+)CD8(+)T cells and Treg cells were significantly lower in untreated group than that in healthy control group (P < 0.05), the ratio of Th17/Treg was significantly higher in untreated group than that in healthy control group (P < 0.05). The frequencies of Th17 were not statistically different between remission and healthy control groups, the frequencies of Treg cells were significantly lower in remission group than that in healthy control group (P < 0.05), the ratio of Th17/Treg was significantly higher in remission group than that in healthy control group (P < 0.05), frequencies of Th17 cells were markedly lower in remission group than that in untreated group (P < 0.05). It is concluded that Th17/Treg imbalance exists in patients with CLL, which may play a key role in pathogenesis and development of CLL.
Aged ; Case-Control Studies ; Female ; Flow Cytometry ; Humans ; Leukemia, Lymphocytic, Chronic, B-Cell ; pathology ; Lymphocyte Count ; Male ; Middle Aged ; T-Lymphocytes, Regulatory ; cytology ; Th17 Cells ; cytology