Efeito da acupuntura sobre as emissões otoacústicas de pacientes com zumbido

Abstract

The treatment of tinnitus is still a challenge. Acupuncture is recommended for the relief of tinnitus in traditional Chinese Medicine, although scientific evidence is lacking. Aim: The aim of this study was to assess the effect of acupuncture on the cochlear function in patients with tinnitus by analyzing otoacoustic emissions. Methods: Thirty eight patients with tinnitus were included in the prospective clinical study. Measures of transitory otoacoustic emissions and suppression of otoacoustic emissions were obtained from all subjects before and after acupuncture. Patients were assigned to one of two groups: intervention group 1 (n=19), in which needle acupuncture was applied at the temporoparietal point corresponding to the vestibulocochlear area, and intervention group 2 (n=19), in which the needle was applied 3cm cranially to this area (which is not a recognized acupuncture point). Results: There was a significant difference between the amplitude of otoacoustic emissions assessed before and after acupuncture in intervention group 1. No difference was observed in intervention group 2. Conclusion: Acupuncture had a significant effect on otoacoustic emissions in patients with tinnitus.

Effectiveness of acupuncture therapy as treatment for tinnitus: a randomized controlled trial

“…Studies have shown that stimulation performed with needles promotes introduction of an electrical charge that triggers action potentials in order to rebalance the system. 13 , 14 …”

The Study of Otoacoustic Emissions and the Suppression of Otoacoustic Emissions in Subjects with Tinnitus and Normal Hearing: An Insight to Tinnitus Etiology

“…According to Azevedo et al, 35 the auditory perception of tinnitus might be related to dysfunction of the efferent auditory pathway, which would result in the loss of OHC modulation, causing abnormal activity of the auditory pathways that could be wrongly interpreted as sound.…”

“…Azevedo et al investigated the effect of acupuncture on OAEs in tinnitus patients and found an increase in the amplitude and suppression of OAEs after acupuncture treatment, 35 suggesting that this method exerts an effect on cochlear function. Lower suppression values were also observed in children with impaired central auditory processing when compared with the control group.…”

Complementary and Alternative Treatments for Tinnitus

“…However, there is still a lack in scientific literature of evidence to support the therapeutic efficacy of acupuncture. Studies have shown that needle stimulation creates an electric charge that has the potential of triggering a rebalancing of the system [14]. Chinese scalp acupuncture is a contemporary acupuncture technique that has been around for just 40 years.…”