Kawakita Kenji, Shinbara Hisashi, Imai Kenji, Fukuda Fumihiko, Yano Tadashi, Kuriyama Kinya
Department of Physiology, Meiji University of Oriental Medicine, Kyoto, Japan.
J Pharmacol Sci. 2006;100(5):443-59. doi: 10.1254/jphs.crj06004x.
The mechanisms of action of acupuncture and moxibustion as reported by Japanese researchers are reviewed. The endogenous opioid-mediated mechanisms of electroacupuncture (EA) as used in China are well understood, but these are only one component of all mechanisms of acupuncture. These studies emphasize the similarity of the analgesic action of EA to various sensory inputs to the pain inhibition mechanisms. In Japanese acupuncture therapy, careful detection of the acupuncture points and fine needling technique with comfortable subjective sensation are considered important. The role of polymodal receptors (PMR) has been stressed based on the facts that PMRs are responsive to both acupuncture and moxibustion stimuli, thermal sensitivity is essential in moxibustion therapy, and the characteristics of acupuncture points and trigger points are similar to those of sensitized PMRs. Acupuncture and moxibustion are also known to affect neurons in the brain reward systems and blood flow in skin, muscle, and nerve. Axon reflexes mediated by PMRs might be a possible mechanism for the immediate action of acupuncture and moxibustion. Reports on the curative effects of acupuncture on various digestive and urological disorders are also reviewed briefly.
本文综述了日本研究人员所报道的针灸和艾灸的作用机制。中国所采用的电针（EA）的内源性阿片介导机制已为人熟知，但这些只是针灸所有机制的一个组成部分。这些研究强调了电针镇痛作用与各种疼痛抑制机制的感觉输入的相似性。在日本针灸疗法中，仔细探测穴位以及采用能带来舒适主观感觉的精细针刺技术被认为很重要。基于多模式感受器（PMR）对针灸和艾灸刺激均有反应、热敏感性在艾灸疗法中至关重要以及穴位和触发点的特征与致敏PMR的特征相似这些事实，多模式感受器的作用得到了强调。针灸和艾灸还已知会影响大脑奖赏系统中的神经元以及皮肤、肌肉和神经中的血流。由PMR介导的轴突反射可能是针灸和艾灸即时作用的一种可能机制。本文还简要综述了针灸对各种消化和泌尿系统疾病疗效的相关报道。
