Intracardiac operations with extracorporeal circulation under acupuncture anaesthesia.

The method and clinical materials of 107 cases of direct vision intracardiac operation with extracorporeal circulation under acupuncture anaesthesia, together with a preliminary consideration of selection of patients, are reported. The most obvious benefit of acupuncture anaesthesia is the marked reduction or the absence of various post-operative respiratory symptoms and complications. Improvements on surgical technique for better result of acupuncture anaesthesia are discussed. It is stressed that further investigations for better analgesic effect are obligatory.