The Effects of Acupuncture on Cerebral Blood Flow in Post-Stroke Patients: A Randomized Controlled Trial

Abstract

Background/Objective: Stroke is a major cause of disability and death in the Western world. Studies have shown a direct relationship between specific mental and motor activity and changes in cerebral blood flow. Acupuncture is often used in post-stroke patients, but there is a lack of sham-controlled studies evaluating the effects of acupuncture on cerebral blood flow following a stroke. This pilot concept-assessment study sought to evaluate the effects of true acupuncture on cerebral blood flow velocity compared with sham acupuncture and lay a foundation for future work in this field. Methods: Seventeen inpatients (age range, 44-79 years) 1-3 months post-stroke were allocated to acupuncture at true acupuncture (TA) points or at sham acupuncture (SA) points. The treatment was 20 minutes long. Transcranial Doppler ultrasonography was used to measure mean flow velocity (MFV) and peak flow velocity (PFV) at both healthy and damaged hemispheres before (T0), in the middle of (T15), and 5 minutes after (T25) treatment. Blood pressure was measured at T0 and T25. Results: A statistically significant ( p < 0.04) MFV increase in both hemispheres was found during and after TA; this increase was higher than that seen with SA ( p < 0.035). Acupuncture had no significant effect on PFV. Systolic blood pressure significantly decreased after acupuncture ( p < 0.005) in a similar manner for both TA and SA. National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale score was negatively correlated with MFV at T15 (r = -0.825; p < 0.05). Conclusion: This pilot study showed a significant influence on cerebral blood flow velocity by TA. This study lays a foundation for larger-scale studies that may prove acupuncture to be a useful tool for cerebral blood flow enhancement during post-stroke rehabilitation.

Retraction: Effect of Acupuncture and Chinese Herbal Medicine on Subacute Stroke Outcomes: A Single Center Randomized Controlled Trial

“…10 11 Combining acupuncture and Chinese herbal medicine may more comprehensively improve post-stroke symptoms and may be more reflective of the clinical strategy most commonly applied in the field. Acupuncture has significant effects on cerebral vascular flow and flow velocity to both hemispheres of the brain, 12 and may reduce the volume of Original paper injury between the hemispheres, according to PET studies. 13 Acupuncture and electroacupuncture may also reduce cognitive impairment in rats through the regulation of expression of apoptosis-related genes, Bcl-2 and Bax, 14 and has been shown to markedly suppress the generation of free radicals after just 2 weeks of treatment.…”

Efficacy and safety of acupuncture for posterior circulation ischemic vertigo

“…In modern medicine, studies indicate that acupuncture can reduce discomforts of vertigo and decreases neurological impairment. A pilot study showed that acupuncture could improve cerebral blood flow velocity in poststroke patients, [ 21 ] and animal experiment reveals that acupuncture effectively promoted cerebral perfusion of ischemic rats. [ 31 ] Systematic and literature reviews have reported the beneficial effect of acupuncture treating stroke.…”

“…[ 12 – 15 ] Clinical and laboratory studies show that acupuncture is safe and has therapeutic effect for ischemic stroke and vertigo patients [ 16 – 19 ] Acupuncture reduces discomforts of vertigo and decreases neurological impairment through prompting cerebral blood flow. [ 20 , 21 ] However, systematic review that focuses on efficacy of acupuncture for PCIV is lacked. Based on these, we aim to evaluate the efficacy and safety of acupuncture for PCIV patients.…”

Risk of acute myocardial infarction in stroke patients receiving acupuncture treatment

“…An additional meta‐analysis that evaluated the effect of Baihui (CV20)‐based scalp acupuncture in animal models of focal cerebral ischaemia concluded that this treatment approach could improve infarct volume and exert a potential neuroprotective role in experimental ischaemic stroke . A recent study that evaluated the effect of acupuncture on cerebral blood flow in post‐stroke patients might also support the use of acupuncture in this condition.…”