Introduction In clinical practice, it has been thought that acupuncture might serve to wash out pain-generating metabolic end-products by improving blood circulation in muscles. We investigated the effects of manual acupuncture (MA) on muscle blood flow (MBF) of normal and denervated hindlimbs in rats. Method Sprague-Dawley rats (n=100) anaesthetised with urethane (1.2g/kg ip) were used. Manual acupuncture with sparrow pecking (SP) at different doses (1, 10 or 30 pecks) was given to the right ventral hindlimb muscles (tibial anterior and extensor digitorum longus muscles) or the right dorsal hindlimb muscles (gastrocnemius, plantaris and soleus muscles). MBF with or without MA was measured using the radiolabelled microsphere technique. The blood pressure was recorded through the right common carotid artery until MBF measurement started. Denervation of hindlimb was conducted by cutting the sciatic and femoral nerves. Results In normal rats, significantly increased MBF after MA were observed only in muscles which were penetrated by an acupuncture needle. The size of the increase depended on the number of times of pecking and seemed to be sustained at least until 60 minutes after MA. However, the increase was observed after both acute and chronic denervation. On the other hand, the mean arterial blood pressure (MAP) did not change significantly before, during or after MA. Conclusion These results suggest that MA could increase muscle blood flow locally in a dose-dependent manner and that this increase may be caused by local vasodilators, as well as the axon reflex. A further study is needed to elucidate the mechanism.
Objective The purpose of this study was to determine how calcitonin gene related peptide (CGRP) via axon reflex participates in increasing local muscle blood flow (MBF) following manual acupuncture (MA). Methods Male Sprague-Dawley rats (N=56, 270-350 g) were used. We examined (1) the effects of MA on MBF in the tibialis anterior (TA) muscle in normal rats; (2) the effects of MA on MBF in the TA injected with saline or hCGRP (low: 2×10 −4 mol/litre; high: 2×10 −3 mol/litre), a competitive CGRP receptor antagonist, in rats; and (3) the effects of MA on MBF in the TA in capsaicin-treated rats. The capsaicin-treated rats were injected with capsaicin dissolved in an ethanol solution within 24 h after birth (50 mg/ kg subcutaneously). MA was applied to the right TA for 1 min. 51Cr-labelled microspheres (15 μm in diameter) were used to measure MBF. Results MA significantly increased MBF without changing arterial blood pressure in normal rats ( p<0.05). MA also significantly increased MBF in saline-injected, low hCGRP 8-37 -injected and high hCGRP 8-37 -injected rats ( p<0.001, 005 and 0.05, respectively). The increases in low and high hCGRP 8-37 -injected rats were lower than those in saline-injected rats, but the difference was not significant. However, MA did not significantly increase MBF in capsaicin-treated rats ( p=0.38). Conclusions We obtained conflicting results, suggesting that the participation of CGRP released via axon reflex may be limited to a local increase in MBF following MA.
Ishimura et al have reported that RI was significantly correlated with age in diabetic patients. Here the same result was obtained in healthy subjects. The incidence of arteriosclerosis is known to increase with age. In general, RI is influenced by vascular resistance. Increase in RI with age in this study was explained by the effect of arteriosclerosis on age-related vascular resistance. These results suggest that age should be considered in the study of blood flow in the kidney.
To examine the participation of nucleus submedius (Sm) in the medial thalamus of pain inhibitory systems, we investigated the effects of acupuncture and focal electrical stimulation of the Sm and adjacent brain sites (0.3 ms, 50 Hz, 50-100 microA, 10 s) on the EMG activity of the external oblique muscle evoked by colorectal distension in urethane-anesthetized Wistar rats. The viscerosomatic reflex (VSR) activity was suppressed after the administration of morphine (1.0 mg/kg, i.v.) and the effect was reversed by naloxone (0.5 mg/kg, i.v.). Transection of the spinal cord at the Th2 level also eliminated the VSR. Acupuncture manipulation applied to the cheek (manual rotation at 1 Hz) suppressed the VSR, and this inhibition was eliminated by microinjections of lidocaine into the bilateral Sm nuclei (0.5 microliter of 1.0% solution). Electrical stimulation in the ventral part but not the dorsal part of the Sm suppressed the VSR. The inhibition of the VSR induced by electrical stimulation of the Sm was not reversed by the administration of naloxone (1.0 mg/kg, i.v.). Electrical stimulation of the adjacent medial thalamic nuclei (mediodorsal nucleus (MD) or centromedial nucleus (CM)) and ventrobasal complex (VB) of the thalamus had very little effect on the VSR. These results suggests that the Sm is not only involved in the relay of nociceptive information to the cortex, but may also be involved in a non-opioid mediated pain inhibitory system and may participate, at least in part, in the suppressive effects of intense acupuncture manipulation on VSR activity.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.
hi@scite.ai
10624 S. Eastern Ave., Ste. A-614
Henderson, NV 89052, USA
Copyright © 2024 scite LLC. All rights reserved.
Made with 💙 for researchers
Part of the Research Solutions Family.