Currency

Research Archive

Welcome to our Chinese medicine and acupuncture research news pages. We add to the content of these pages continuously as more research news comes in. Browse through the complete archive below or use the category links on the right.

Please note that the most twenty recent research archive items are free to view but access to the thousands of items in the archive require a journal subscription.

ACUPUNCTURE FOR BREECH PRESENTATION

Categories: Pregnancy & labour

An Italian study into breech presentation compared 112 randomly selected women who were given acupuncture and moxibustion at Zhiyin BL-67, with 114 women who were simply observed. All were at 33-35 weeks of gestation. The proportion of caesarean sections required in the acupuncture treatment group was significantly lower than in the control group (52.3% versus 66.7%). (Journal of Maternal-Fetal an ...

ACUPUNCTURE FOR PELVIC AND BACK PAIN IN PREGNANCY

Categories: Pregnancy & labour

In this Swedish study, 72 pregnant women (24-37 weeks) suffering pelvic or low back pain were randomly assigned to an acupuncture group or a control group. Traditional acupuncture points and ahshi points were needled (with deqi elicited) in individualised treatments, once or twice a week until disappearance of symptoms or delivery in the acupuncture group. Treatment was given for at least three we ...

ACUPUNCTURE EFFECTIVE FOR PELVIC PAIN IN PREGNANCY

Categories: Pregnancy & labour

One in three women suffer potentially severe and disabling pelvic girdle pain during pregnancy. Now a Swedish study has demonstrated that acupuncture is more effective than either standard or specialised exercises in relieving the pain. 386 pregnant women were assigned to a six-week treatment programme involving either standard home exercise, standard exercise plus acupuncture or specialised exerc ...

SHIATSU HELPS POST-TERM LABOUR

Categories: Pregnancy & labour

Pregnant post-term women who were taught shiatsu techniques by a midwife were significantly more likely to go into labour spontaneously compared to women who did not learn the technique. (Complement Ther Med 2005; 13: 11-15).

ACUPUNCTURE REDUCES EPIDURALS

Categories: Pregnancy & labour

A Norwegian study has shown that women who receive acupuncture during labour have a significantly reduced rate of epidural anaesthesia. (Nesheim BI, Kinge R. Performance of acupuncture as labor analgesia in the clinical setting. Acta Obstet Gynecol Scand. 2006;85(4):441-3).

PREBIRTH ACUPUNCTURE

Categories: Pregnancy & labour

A study of prebirth acupuncture given in the practices of 14 New Zealand midwives over a four-month period found a 35% reduction in induction rates (43% for primigravidae), 31% reduction in epidurals, 32% reduction in emergency caesarean sections and 9% increase in normal vaginal birth compared to the general population. The most commonly used points were Sanyinjiao SP-6, Zusanli ST-36, Yanglingqu ...

ACUPUNCTURE & PELVIC PAIN

Categories: Pregnancy & labour

Acupuncture has previously been shown to be more effective than either standard or specialised exercises in relieving pelvic pain in pregnancy (BMJ 2005;330:761). Now a new study has compared subcutaneous needling without further stimulation and deep needling with deqi for the same problem. Both groups experienced significant improvements in levels of pain intensity at rest and in daily activities ...

ACUPUNCTURE & LABOUR PAIN

Categories: Pregnancy & labour

A meta-analysis of three trials (496 women) into the use of acupuncture to relieve pain in labour suggests that women receiving acupuncture required less analgesia, including the need for epidural analgesic and a reduced need for augmentation with oxytocin. (Complementary and alternative therapies for pain management in labour. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews 2006 Issue 4).

ACUPUNCTURE & BREECH PRESENTATION

Categories: Pregnancy & labour

A study of the effectiveness and cost of moxibustion for breech presentation compared to standard care found that the percentage of breech presentations after moxibustion was 24.5% compared to 42% for standard care, and that if only 10% of women opted for moxibustion it would overall be more effective and less costly than standard care. (The effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of Breech Version A ...