Lange termijn effecten bij DM pijnlijke neuropathie
Er zijn ook gegevens bekend van de lange termijneffecten van, zoals de universitaire onderzoekers dat noemen, 'acupunctuur analgesie'. Ingezet bij pijnlijke neuropathie ten gevolge van diabetes. Meer dan 3/4 van de behandelde patienten vond duidelijk baat bij de behandeling, en nog belangrijker, meer dan 65% kon stoppen of minderen met de pijnstillers. Aangezien de meest gebruikte pijnstillers bij pijnlijke neuropathie behoorlijk duur zijn, is dit ook kostentechnisch gezien een belangrijk resultaat! Laten we de onderzoekers aan het woord:
Acupuncture for the treatment of chronic painful peripheral diabetic neuropathy : a long-term study. By ABUAISHA B. B. (1) ; COSTANZI J. B. (1) ; BOULTON A. J. M. (1) ;
Affiliation(s) du ou des auteurs / Author(s) Affiliation(s)
(1) Department of Medicine, Manchester Royal Infirmary, Unisversity of Manchester, Manchester M13 9WL, ROYAUME-UNI
Résumé / Abstract
Forty-six diabetic patients with chronic painful peripheral neuropathy were treated with acupuncture analgesia to determine its efficacy and long-term effectiveness. Twenty-nine (63%) patients were already on standard medical treatment for painful neuropathy. Patients initially received up to six courses of classical acupuncture analgesia over a period of 10 weeks, using traditional Chinese Medicine acupuncture points. Forty-four patients completed the study with 34 (77%) showing significant improvement in their primary and/or secondary symptoms (P<0.01). These patients were followed up for a period of 18-52 weeks with 67% were able to stop or reduce their medications significantly. During the follow-up period only eight (24%) patients required further acupuncture treatment. Although 34 (77%) patients noted significant improvement in their symptoms, only seven (21%) noted that their symptoms cleared completely. All the patients but one finished the full course of acupuncture treatment without reported or observed side effects. There were no significant changes either in the peripheral neurological examination scores, VPT or in HbAlc during the course of treatment. These data suggest that acupuncture is a safe and effective therapy for the long-term management of painful diabetic neuropathy, although its mechanism of action remains speculative.
Revue / Journal Title
Diabetes research and clinical practice. 1998, 39: 115-121