title: [Electroacupuncture intervention combined with general anesthesia for 80 cases of heart valve replacement surgery under cardiopulmonary bypass].
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To determine whether electroacupuncture (EA) intervention combined with general anesthesia (GA) strategy can reduce early post-operative morbidity and medical costs in patients undergoing heart valve replacement operation under cardiopulmonary bypass.
  
  
  METHODS
  A total of 160 heart valve replacement surgery patients undergoing cardiopulmonary bypass were randomly divided into GA and EA + GA groups (n = 80 in each group). Patients of the GA group were given with intravenous injection of Fentanyl, Midazolam, Vecuronium Bromide, etc. and routine tracheal intubation. EA (3-4 Hz, 2.0-2.2 mA) was applied to bilateral Zhongfu (LU 1), Chize (LU 5) and Ximen (PC 4) beginning about 20 mm before the surgery in the EA + GA group. Endotracheal intubation was not employed but only prepared as a standby for patients of the EA + GA group. The dosage of narcotic drugs, duration of surgery, duration of aertic blockage, rate of cardiac re-beating, volumes of post-operative blood transfusion, discharge volume, cases of post-operative pulmonary infection, vocal cord injury, and the time of first bed-off, first eating and duration in intensive care unit (IOU) residence. etc. were recorded.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The successful rates of heart valve replacement surgery were similar in both GA and EA + GA groups. Compared with the GA group, the dosages of Fentanyl, Midazolam and Vecuronium of the EA + GA group were significantly lower (P < 0.05, P < 0.01), the numbers of patients needing blood-transfusion, antibiotics treatment, and suffering from pulmonary infection were fewer, the time of first bed-off and duration of hospitalizetion and IOU residence were considerably shorter (P < 0.05, P < 0.01) and the total medical cost was obviously lower (P < 0.05) in the EA + GA group.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  EA combined with general anesthesia strategy for heart valve replacement surgery without endotracheal intubation is safe and can reduce post-operative morbidity and medical costs in patients undergoing heart valve replacement surgery under cardiopulmonary bypass.
authors.forename: Hao
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Chi
authors.forename: Wen-Xiong
authors.initials: WX
authors.lastname: Zhou
authors.forename: Yao-Yao
authors.initials: YY
authors.lastname: Wu
authors.forename: Tong-Yu
authors.initials: TY
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: Wen
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Ge
authors.forename: Lan
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Yuan
authors.forename: Wei-Dong
authors.initials: WD
authors.lastname: Shen
authors.forename: Jia
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Zhou
mesh_terms: D015667:Acupuncture Analgesia; D000328:Adult; D000768:Anesthesia, General; D002315:Cardiopulmonary Bypass; D003131:Combined Modality Therapy; D015671:Electroacupuncture; D005260:Female; D006349:Heart Valve Diseases / Q000150:complications / Q000601:surgery*; D006351:Heart Valves / Q000601:surgery / Q000637:transplantation*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010149:Postoperative Pain / Q000401:mortality / Q000517:prevention & control / Q000628:therapy*