The warming acupuncture for treatment of sciatica in 30 cases.
OBJECTIVE
To observe the relation between the pain threshold and the therapeutic effects of acupuncture for sciatica.


METHODS
90 sciatica patients were equally divided at random into the following 3 groups: a warming acupuncture group treated with the needles warmed by burning moxa, a western medicine group administered Nimesulide tablets and a point-injection group with Anisodamine injected. The pain threshold was tested before treatment and after the first, second and third treatment courses.


RESULTS
The warming acupuncture therapy showed better therapeutic effects than the other two groups with significant differences in the change of pain threshold and the improvement of clinical symptoms and signs (P<0.01).


CONCLUSIONS
Acupuncture can relieve the symptoms of sciatica with the increase of pain threshold.
Chen
Mei-ren
MR
Hunan TCM Professional Training College, Zhuzhou 412012, China.
Wang
Ping
P
Cheng
Gang
G
Guo
Xiang
X
Wei
Gao-wen
GW
Cheng
Xu-hui
XH
D015670:Acupuncture Therapy / Q000379:methods*; D000328:Adult; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D017288:Pain Threshold; D012585:Sciatica / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000628:therapy*