title: Increased survival of ischaemic musculocutaneous flaps in rats after acupuncture.
abstract: The effects of acupuncture on survival of ischaemic musculocutaneous flaps were investigated in the rat. A dorsal cranially based standard flap (2 X 7 cm) was elevated and sutured back in position. The percentage survival of the flaps was estimated after 6 days. Manual acupuncture, electro-acupuncture but not superficial acupuncture significantly increased the survival of the flaps compared to untreated controls. The highest flap survival (92%) was obtained with repeated post-operative high-intensity electro-acupuncture. It is concluded that acupuncture treatment markedly increases experimental flap survival and may be of clinical importance for treatment of local ischaemia.
authors.affiliation: Department of Physiology, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden.
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Jansen
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Lundeberg
authors.forename: U E
authors.initials: UE
authors.lastname: Samuelson
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Thomas
mesh_terms: D015670:Acupuncture Therapy; D000818:Animals; D005260:Female; D006085:Graft Survival; D051381:Rats; D011919:Rats, Inbred Strains; D013524:Surgical Flaps; D013997:Time Factors