Chueainta Phurion, Punyapornwithaya Veerasak, Tangjitjaroen Weerapongse, Pongkan Wanpitak, Boonyapakorn Chavalit
Veterinary Cardiopulmonary Clinic, Small Animal Hospital, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Chiang Mai University, Chiang Mai 50200, Thailand.
Department of Food Animal Clinic, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Chiang Mai University, Chiang Mai 50100, Thailand.
Vet Sci. 2022 Feb 18;9(2):88. doi: 10.3390/vetsci9020088.
Among the respiratory disorders in dogs from small breeds, tracheal collapse is one of the most commonly found in clinical practice. Presently, acupuncture is widely used as an alternative treatment which was shown to bring about positive effects in the treatment of human respiratory diseases. The present study demonstrated the effect of acupuncture on tracheal collapse dogs. We hypothesized that acupuncture can help dogs suffering from tracheal collapse by improving various parameters including heart rate variability, serum biomarkers for oxidative stress, exercise performance, and quality of life. Twenty client-owned dogs from small breeds with tracheal collapse disease were enrolled. The study was divided into two 5-week periods. During the first period, the dogs received normal veterinary care but received no acupuncture treatment (NAC). After completing that period, all forms of treatment were withheld for one week before the beginning of the second period. In the second period, all dogs restarted normal veterinary care and underwent acupuncture treatment (AC) once a week for five consecutive weeks. Blood was collected at the beginning and end of each of the two periods for malondialdehyde (MDA) level measurement. Heart rate variability (HRV) was recorded at the 1st, 3rd and 5th weeks of both periods. Exercise tests were performed at the beginning and end of AC period and questionnaire interviews with the owners were accomplished at the end of each period. The results showed that acupuncture can alleviate clinical signs of tracheal collapse, reduce MDA level, and improve sympathovagal balance. We suggest that acupuncture treatment could be used as an adjunct treatment for canine tracheal collapse.
在小型犬的呼吸道疾病中，气管塌陷是临床实践中最常见的疾病之一。目前，针灸作为一种替代疗法被广泛应用，已证明其在治疗人类呼吸道疾病方面能产生积极效果。本研究展示了针灸对患有气管塌陷的犬只的影响。我们假设针灸可以通过改善包括心率变异性、氧化应激血清生物标志物、运动能力和生活质量等各项参数，来帮助患有气管塌陷的犬只。招募了20只患有气管塌陷疾病的小型客户自养犬。研究分为两个为期5周的阶段。在第一阶段，犬只接受常规兽医护理，但不接受针灸治疗（非针灸组）。在该阶段结束后，在第二阶段开始前的一周停止所有形式的治疗。在第二阶段，所有犬只重新开始常规兽医护理，并连续5周每周接受一次针灸治疗（针灸组）。在两个阶段的每一个阶段开始和结束时采集血液，用于测量丙二醛（MDA）水平。在两个阶段的第1、3和5周记录心率变异性（HRV）。在针灸阶段开始和结束时进行运动测试，并在每个阶段结束时与犬主进行问卷调查。结果表明，针灸可以减轻气管塌陷的临床症状，降低MDA水平，并改善交感迷走神经平衡。我们建议针灸治疗可作为犬气管塌陷的辅助治疗方法。
