Rehabilitation Center, Hainan Provincial Nongken General Hospital, Haikou, Hainan, China.
Department of Biomedical Sciences, City University of Hong Kong, Kowloon, Hong Kong SAR, China.
Ann Phys Rehabil Med. 2019 Jul;62(4):297-301. doi: 10.1016/j.rehab.2018.09.010. Epub 2018 Nov 5.
Spasticity is a motor disorder encountered after upper motor neuron lesions. It adversely affects quality of life in most patients and causes long-term burden of care and has significant financial implications. The effect of conventional therapies for spasticity including physical therapy, surgery, and pharmacotherapy are not always satisfying because of the short-term effects or side effects in some patients. Acupuncture is a part of traditional medicine originating from China. It has been used to resolve functional recovery problems after central nervous system injury for many years in Asian countries and is increasingly popular in western countries. Some researches suggest that acupuncture has therapeutic potential to help improve limb movement function and decrease the severity of spasticity. This review synthesizes studies involving stroke, brain injury, spinal cord injury, cerebral palsy, and multiple sclerosis to give an overall picture of the effect and potential mechanisms of acupuncture on spasticity occurring after upper motor neuron lesions. Moderate-quality evidence suggests that electroacupuncture combined with conventional routine care (pharmacological/rehabilitation) could reduce spasticity and improve motor function and activities in daily living after stroke. However, there is not enough evidence to conclude that acupuncture (including electroacupuncture) could reduce spasticity with other central nervous system diseases.
痉挛是上运动神经元损伤后出现的一种运动障碍。它会使大多数患者的生活质量下降，并导致长期的护理负担和重大的经济影响。由于一些患者的短期效果或副作用，传统的痉挛治疗方法，包括物理治疗、手术和药物治疗，并不总是令人满意。针灸是源于中国的传统医学的一部分。在亚洲国家，它已经被用于解决中枢神经系统损伤后的功能恢复问题多年，并且在西方国家越来越受欢迎。一些研究表明，针灸具有治疗潜力，可以帮助改善肢体运动功能并降低痉挛的严重程度。本综述综合了涉及中风、脑损伤、脊髓损伤、脑瘫和多发性硬化症的研究，以全面了解针灸对上运动神经元损伤后出现的痉挛的作用和潜在机制。中等质量的证据表明，电针结合常规常规护理（药物/康复）可降低中风后痉挛程度，并改善运动功能和日常生活活动能力。然而，尚无足够的证据表明针灸（包括电针）可降低其他中枢神经系统疾病的痉挛程度。
