title: Peripheral nerve adjustment for postherpetic neuralgia: a randomized, controlled clinical study.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To observe the therapeutic effect of peripheral nerve adjustment for the treatment of postherpetic neuralgia (PHN).
  
  
  METHODS
  One hundred and two patients with PHN were randomly assigned to three groups; the control group (A), the experimental group (B), which was subjected to peripheral nerve adjustment, and patients who received a sham peripheral nerve adjustment, thus serving as a positive control group (C). The patients' Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) and total oral rescue dosage for pain management were recorded at days 1, 3, 7, 14, and 28 following treatment. Quality of life (QOL), 36-Item Short-Form Health Survey (SF-36), and side effects were recorded following treatment.
  
  
  RESULTS
  We observed that the average VAS score was significantly lower in the treatment group (B) than in the control groups A and C following treatment (P < 0.05). In addition, the QOL and SF-36 scores for group B improved substantially following treatment compared to groups A and C, and this effect was maintained up to 180 days after treatment (P < 0.05). The average dosage of pain medication was also lower in group B, compared to groups A and C, following treatment (P < 0.05).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  We conclude that peripheral nerve adjustment can relieve PHN pain and improve patients' quality of life. The possible mechanisms involved may include the reduction of both peripheral and central sensitization, the modulation of nerve plasticity, and an increase in endogenous analgesic molecules.
authors.affiliation: Department of Anesthesiology, Shanghai Sixth People's Hospital, Shanghai JiaoTong University, Shanghai, China.
authors.forename: Ke
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Ma
authors.forename: Quan-Hong
authors.initials: QH
authors.lastname: Zhou
authors.forename: Yong-Ming
authors.initials: YM
authors.lastname: Xu
authors.forename: Tao
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Xu
authors.forename: Dong-Ping
authors.initials: DP
authors.lastname: Du
authors.forename: Xiaohui
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Huang
authors.forename: Wei
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Jiang
mesh_terms: D015670:Acupuncture Therapy / Q000379:methods*; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D051474:Neuralgia, Postherpetic / Q000628:therapy*; D010147:Pain Measurement; D011788:Quality of Life; D016037:Single-Blind Method; D016896:Treatment Outcome
keywords: Peripheral Nerve; Plasticity; Postherpetic Neuralgia; Sensitization