title: Safety of different acupuncture manipulations for posterior circulation ischemia with vertigo.
abstract: Acupuncture at Fengchi (GB20) in the posterior neck improves vertigo. However, subarachnoid hemorrhage and spinal epidural hematoma have been reported to occur after acupuncture in the posterior neck. Therefore, in the present study, we assessed the safety of acupuncture at Fengchi. Laboratory tests and adverse event reports were used to evaluate the safety of different acupuncture manipulations for the treatment of posterior circulation ischemia with vertigo. A total of 136 patients were randomly assigned to four groups. Verum acupuncture was conducted with different needle insertion directions (contralateral paropia or prominentia laryngea) and different needle twisting frequencies (60 or 120 times/minute) at Fengchi and matching acupoints (for example, Zhongwan [CV12], Qihai [CV6], Zusanli [ST36], and Fenglong [ST40]). The patients received 14 treatments over 3-4 weeks. Routine blood analysis, hepatic and renal function tests, urine and feces tests and electrocardiography were performed before the first treatment session and after the final session. Adverse events were recorded after every session. Of the 136 patients, 120 completed the study. There were no significant differences between pretreatment and posttreatment test results in any of the groups. Only five patients suffered from minor adverse events (needling pain, slight hematoma and transient chest tightness). No serious adverse events were found. Our results indicate that a 14-session course of needling at Fengchi is relatively safe for treating posterior circulation ischemia with vertigo.
authors.affiliation: Department of Acupuncture and Moxibustion, First Teaching Hospital of Tianjin University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Tianjin, China.
authors.forename: Yan
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Wen
authors.affiliation: Department of Acupuncture and Moxibustion, First Teaching Hospital of Tianjin University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Tianjin, China.
authors.forename: Chao
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.affiliation: Institute of Acupuncture and Moxibustion, First Teaching Hospital of Tianjin University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Tianjin, China.
authors.forename: Xiao-Feng
authors.initials: XF
authors.lastname: Zhao
authors.affiliation: Department of Acupuncture and Moxibustion, First Teaching Hospital of Tianjin University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Tianjin, China.
authors.forename: Shi-Zhe
authors.initials: SZ
authors.lastname: Deng
authors.affiliation: Department of Acupuncture and Moxibustion, First Teaching Hospital of Tianjin University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Tianjin, China.
authors.forename: Si
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: He
authors.affiliation: Northern Jiangsu People's Hospital, Yangzhou, Jiangsu Province, China.
authors.forename: Ling-Hui
authors.initials: LH
authors.lastname: Huang
authors.affiliation: Department of Acupuncture and Moxibustion, First Teaching Hospital of Tianjin University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Tianjin, China.
authors.forename: Guang
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Tian
authors.affiliation: Department of Acupuncture and Moxibustion, First Teaching Hospital of Tianjin University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Tianjin, China.
authors.forename: Zhi-Hong
authors.identifier: 0000-0002-8470-2696
authors.initials: ZH
authors.lastname: Meng
keywords: Fengchi (GB20); acupuncture; adverse event; direction; nerve regeneration; neural regeneration; posterior circulation ischemia; safety; twisting frequency; vertigo