Blood-letting therapy combined with Master Tung's Five-tiger Point Scraping (Gua Sha) for patients with hematological malignancy and chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuritis.

OBJECTIVE

To investigate the clinical efficacy of Shixuan and Qiduan blood-letting therapy combined with Master Tung's Five-tiger Point (11.27) Scraping for patients with hematological malignancy and peripheral neuritis.

METHODS

A total of 70 patients with hematological malignancy who were admitted to Langfang TCM Hospital between January 2020 and December 2022 for treating chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuritis were enrolled retrospectively. The patients were divided into a single treatment group that received western nutritional interventions alone, and a combined treatment group that underwent additional Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) Shixuan and Qiduan blood-letting therapy, along with Master Tung's Five-tiger Point (11.27) Scraping. Statistical analyses were carried out to compare the clinical efficacy of the two treatment plans in the patients. Scores of sensory disturbance rating (SDR), numeric rating scale (NRS) for pain, nail fold microcirculation (NFM) of the infected extremity, and the quality of life (QoL), as well as the motor nerve conduction velocity (MNCV) and sensory nerve conduction velocity (SNCV) of the median and peroneal nerves of patients in both groups were recorded and compared before and after treatment. The incidence rate of adverse events was compared between the two groups. Furthermore, the clinical outcomes of patients in the two groups were followed up and analyzed for correlated factors using univariate and multivariate analyses.

RESULTS

The clinical efficacy rate achieved by the combined therapy was 88.57%, significantly higher than 68.57% for patients undergoing single therapy (P=0.041). Moreover, the scores of SDR, pain NRS, QoL, and NFM of the affected extremity, as well as the MNCV and SNCV of patients in the two groups were all improved after treatment, with better improvements in the combined treatment group than in the single treatment group. The incidence rate of adverse events was higher in the single treatment group compared to that of the combined treatment group (17.14% vs. 11.42%) (P=0.466). In addition, during the six-month follow-up period, a total of 27 patients in both groups developed chronic neural disorders. Logistic regression analysis revealed that the MNCV and SNCV of the median and peroneal nerves, together with the duration of chemotherapy, served as independent influencing factors.

CONCLUSION

Shixuan and Qiduan blood-letting therapy combined with Master Tung's Five-tiger Point (11.27) Scraping could improve the SDR and pain NRS scores, facilitate the recovery of neural functions, and advance the QoL of patients with chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuritis without increasing the risk of adverse reactions.