Zhang Zhongfang, Gu Xiu, Wang Wenying, (Shanghai Institute of Traditional Chinese Medicine)
Zeng Zhaolin, Zhang Meili (Shanghai College of Traditional Chinese Medicine)
He Zongde (Shuguang Hospital of Shanghai College of Traditional Chinese Medicine)
Zhou Shiheng (Eye, Ear, Nose and Throat Hospital of Shanghai First Medical College)
The application of acupuncture therapy in deafness and deafmutism made it possible to improve the hearing of the patients with profound impairment of auditory function. The clinical data observed in treatment of deafness and deafmutism and the results of the animal experiments concerning the mechanism for promoting the auditory function under the action of acupuncture since 1958 were summarized in the present article.
In the early works, a preliminary observation on 510 cases of deafness and 301 cases of deaf-mutism proved that the acupuncture therapy was effective to improve the hearing of the patients. The effective rate reached 93.3% in deafness and 84.7% in deaf-mutism. The acupuncture points used in both cases were essentially similar, consisting of those around the ear and on the extremities. The therapeutic measures were emphasized chiefly in treating deafness. In some patients, the improved hearing regressed progressively after the termination of the therapy to the original level prior to treatment. Among 316 cases of deafness and 180 cases of deaf-mutism, the reduction of hearing was found in 162 cases (50.6%) and in 54 cases (30%) respectively. Thus the reduction of hearing occured in 30-50% of patients after discontinuation of treatment was a general phenomenon of the acupuncture therapy both in cases of deafness and deaf-mutism.
For an accurate evaluation of the efficacy of the acupuncture therapy, further studies were performed on 30 cases of sensori-neural deafness and 28 cases of deaf-mutism with known etiological factor, and recieving a detailed E.N.T. and audiological examination. An improvement of hearing more than 10 db for pure tone audiometry was regarded as significant. The effective rate was 36.9% in deafness and 17.9% in deaf-mutism. The factors influencing the efficacy of acupuncture therapy were the course and the etiological factors of the disease as well as the nature and the reversibility of the pathological lesion in the inner ear. A better therapeutic effect was obtained in deafness of shorter duration with a reversible pathological changes in the inner ear such as sudden deafness, senile deafness and deafness caused by head trauma, but it was less effective in deafness of longer duration and that resulting from infectious disease such as typhoid, influenza and measles. The etiological factors of the deaf-mutism may be congential, but most cases were caused by high fever or general infections occured in childhood, which usually resulted in an extensive injury of the organ of Corti and leaving an irreversible pathological changes in the inner ear. Thus the efficacy of acupuncture therapy in treatment of deaf-mutism was reduced. It was also of little benefit to the patient with complete loss of the auditory and the vestibular functions.
Methods of combining traditional Chinese and western medicine were employed for further promoting the therapeutic effects of the deafness. These included the application of radioisotope P{32} on the tympanitic membrane for inducing a stimulating effect to the inner ear and the injections of coenzyme A and liquid extract of Ganoderma japonicum respectively into the acupuncture points around the ear for improving the metabolism of the tissue in the inner ear. In 78 cases of sensori-neural deafness treated with P{32} the effective rate was 47.5%. In 32 cases and 21 cases treated with injection of coenzyme A and Ganoderma japonicum into the points respectively, the rate of effectiveness was 46.9% in the former and 47.6% in the latter.
To investigate the mechanism of acupuncture in treatment of deafness, the animal experiments were designated to elucidate its effect on the excitability of the auditory cortex and on the permeability of the capillaries of the inner ear. In experiments with the electro-physiological methods on guinea pig, an increase in the amplitude of the evoked potential of the auditory cortex followed by a series of repetitive after-discharges in response to a click during needling the acupuncture points employed in the clinics demonstrated that the excitabllity of the auditory cortex was enhanced under the action of acupuncture. This effect was not evident as the animal was being under the deep anesthesia or after administration of chlorpromazine. It was suggested that the acupuncture effect on the auditory cortex depended on the normal function of the non-specific diffuse projection system. This finding showed evidence that the increase in the excitability of the auditory cortex might be considered to play a role for explaining the mechanism of acupuncture effect. It was of benefit to promote the analytic and synthetic function of the auditory cortex in processing the sound signal and made the residual hearing to be utilized sufficiently.
Other experiments on rabbits were carried out to elucidate the effect of acupuncture on the permeability of the capillaries of the inner ear. Radioisotope P{32} was administered to the rabbit intraperitoneally. The concentration of P{32} was found higher in the perilymph of the rabbit after needling the points around the ear than that of the control. The difference was statistically significant. This effect failed to occur when the rabbit was deeply anesthetized by nembutal. That the high concentration of P{32} appeared in the perilymph due to the action of the acupuncture could be resulted either from an increase of permeability of the capillaries or an augmentation of the micro-circulation of the inner ear. However, no matter which process might be, it was expected that an improvement on the exchange of nutrients and other substances between the blood and perilymph would occur, which was beneficial to restore the function of inner ear to normal.
Zeng Zhaolin, Zhang Meili (Shanghai College of Traditional Chinese Medicine)
He Zongde (Shuguang Hospital of Shanghai College of Traditional Chinese Medicine)
Zhou Shiheng (Eye, Ear, Nose and Throat Hospital of Shanghai First Medical College)
The application of acupuncture therapy in deafness and deafmutism made it possible to improve the hearing of the patients with profound impairment of auditory function. The clinical data observed in treatment of deafness and deafmutism and the results of the animal experiments concerning the mechanism for promoting the auditory function under the action of acupuncture since 1958 were summarized in the present article.
In the early works, a preliminary observation on 510 cases of deafness and 301 cases of deaf-mutism proved that the acupuncture therapy was effective to improve the hearing of the patients. The effective rate reached 93.3% in deafness and 84.7% in deaf-mutism. The acupuncture points used in both cases were essentially similar, consisting of those around the ear and on the extremities. The therapeutic measures were emphasized chiefly in treating deafness. In some patients, the improved hearing regressed progressively after the termination of the therapy to the original level prior to treatment. Among 316 cases of deafness and 180 cases of deaf-mutism, the reduction of hearing was found in 162 cases (50.6%) and in 54 cases (30%) respectively. Thus the reduction of hearing occured in 30-50% of patients after discontinuation of treatment was a general phenomenon of the acupuncture therapy both in cases of deafness and deaf-mutism.
For an accurate evaluation of the efficacy of the acupuncture therapy, further studies were performed on 30 cases of sensori-neural deafness and 28 cases of deaf-mutism with known etiological factor, and recieving a detailed E.N.T. and audiological examination. An improvement of hearing more than 10 db for pure tone audiometry was regarded as significant. The effective rate was 36.9% in deafness and 17.9% in deaf-mutism. The factors influencing the efficacy of acupuncture therapy were the course and the etiological factors of the disease as well as the nature and the reversibility of the pathological lesion in the inner ear. A better therapeutic effect was obtained in deafness of shorter duration with a reversible pathological changes in the inner ear such as sudden deafness, senile deafness and deafness caused by head trauma, but it was less effective in deafness of longer duration and that resulting from infectious disease such as typhoid, influenza and measles. The etiological factors of the deaf-mutism may be congential, but most cases were caused by high fever or general infections occured in childhood, which usually resulted in an extensive injury of the organ of Corti and leaving an irreversible pathological changes in the inner ear. Thus the efficacy of acupuncture therapy in treatment of deaf-mutism was reduced. It was also of little benefit to the patient with complete loss of the auditory and the vestibular functions.
Methods of combining traditional Chinese and western medicine were employed for further promoting the therapeutic effects of the deafness. These included the application of radioisotope P{32} on the tympanitic membrane for inducing a stimulating effect to the inner ear and the injections of coenzyme A and liquid extract of Ganoderma japonicum respectively into the acupuncture points around the ear for improving the metabolism of the tissue in the inner ear. In 78 cases of sensori-neural deafness treated with P{32} the effective rate was 47.5%. In 32 cases and 21 cases treated with injection of coenzyme A and Ganoderma japonicum into the points respectively, the rate of effectiveness was 46.9% in the former and 47.6% in the latter.
To investigate the mechanism of acupuncture in treatment of deafness, the animal experiments were designated to elucidate its effect on the excitability of the auditory cortex and on the permeability of the capillaries of the inner ear. In experiments with the electro-physiological methods on guinea pig, an increase in the amplitude of the evoked potential of the auditory cortex followed by a series of repetitive after-discharges in response to a click during needling the acupuncture points employed in the clinics demonstrated that the excitabllity of the auditory cortex was enhanced under the action of acupuncture. This effect was not evident as the animal was being under the deep anesthesia or after administration of chlorpromazine. It was suggested that the acupuncture effect on the auditory cortex depended on the normal function of the non-specific diffuse projection system. This finding showed evidence that the increase in the excitability of the auditory cortex might be considered to play a role for explaining the mechanism of acupuncture effect. It was of benefit to promote the analytic and synthetic function of the auditory cortex in processing the sound signal and made the residual hearing to be utilized sufficiently.
Other experiments on rabbits were carried out to elucidate the effect of acupuncture on the permeability of the capillaries of the inner ear. Radioisotope P{32} was administered to the rabbit intraperitoneally. The concentration of P{32} was found higher in the perilymph of the rabbit after needling the points around the ear than that of the control. The difference was statistically significant. This effect failed to occur when the rabbit was deeply anesthetized by nembutal. That the high concentration of P{32} appeared in the perilymph due to the action of the acupuncture could be resulted either from an increase of permeability of the capillaries or an augmentation of the micro-circulation of the inner ear. However, no matter which process might be, it was expected that an improvement on the exchange of nutrients and other substances between the blood and perilymph would occur, which was beneficial to restore the function of inner ear to normal.
No comments:
Post a Comment