Acupuncture for stroke survivor:

Acupuncture  for stroke survivor:

Acupuncture originated in China, where it has been practised for over 3000 years.¹ Clinical interest in the west began in the latter part of the twentieth century.² Acupuncture is a component of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM). According to TCM, living beings possess vital energy (Qi) that flows through invisible energy lines (meridians) on the body. Each meridian is linked to specific organs and hormonal secretions. The organs and glands of the body are viewed as interdependent. 

Good health exists when everything is working in harmony and Qi is flowing smoothly. Disease begins when the flow of Qi is unbalanced by illness, stress and bad lifestyle choices. Inserting acupuncture needles (energy balancers) into specific points along the meridians brings harmony to the flow of Qi and consequently to organs and glands. A good acupuncturist will also pay attention to diet and lifestyle.

TCM is an entire system of medicine. While a TCM-orientated acupuncturist will view a patient’s health in terms of vital energy and work to restore the balance and flow of Qi, a clinically-oriented western acupuncturist is likely to make a more conventional western diagnosis, regard acupuncture as stimulating nerve endings, and view it as just one of a range of therapeutic options.

Acupuncture treatment involves inserting thin needles through the patient’s skin at specific points and at varying depths. Acupuncture therapy generally involves several weekly or fortnightly treatments. Most courses consist of up to 12 sessions. A visit to an acupuncturist generally begins with an examination and an assessment of the patient’s condition. The acupuncturist identifies where to insert the needles. The depth to which they are inserted varies from between half a centimetre to three or four centimetres. Most sessions last about 30 minutes. The patient will be asked to lie down, either face-up, face-down, or on his or her side, depending on where the needles are to be inserted. The acupuncturist should use single-use disposable sterile needles. As each needle is inserted, the patient should feel it, though initially without any discomfort. When the needle reaches the right depth, however, there should be a deep aching sensation. Once inserted, the needles remain there for about 20 minutes. Sometimes, the needles are heated or stimulated with electricity after insertion.

Possible benefits of Acupuncture for stroke

 In China, in particular, and in other parts of Asia, there is a strong belief in the benefits of acupuncture in stroke treatment. In a survey in 2009 shows that 66 percent of Chinese doctors routinely used acupuncture for stroke and 63 percent believed acupuncture to be effective. Surveys from 1995 and 1997, respectively, suggest that belief in the legitimacy or efficacy of acupuncture treatments in general (not specifically for stroke treatment) are about 56 percent in the USA and 65 percent in the UK.

It is believed that acupuncture affects the human body in two principal ways: by influencing blood circulation and by generating biochemical effects, either at the place of application or at a distance. Correspondingly, a systematic review of recent research argues that acupuncture could be useful for stroke rehabilitation in two ways.

Firstly, acupuncture has been observed to modify blood flow to the brain, which could assist in a faster and more effective recovery. It might, for example, help in the rehabilitation of stroke patients suffering from aphasia (impairment of language functions). A recent study suggests that acupuncture can increase blood flow to those parts of the brain connected to language that may be damaged by stroke.

Secondly, by inserting needles into the skin, pain receptors are activated and send signals to the central nervous system to release opioid peptides (amino acids produced by the body that affect mood, stress and pain). This relaxes muscles and permits an increased range of motion in the affected limb, allowing for better motor impairment rehabilitation.

Acupuncture involves very few risks but in a small number of cases it can result in bleeding, fainting or nausea. ‘Acupuncture is a safe therapy, but has adverse effects like any therapeutic approach. The few serious adverse effects that have been reported to be caused by acupuncture were not observed in our study. Bleeding, haematomata and systemic syndromes are common. It is obligatory to use sterile needles, though skin disinfection might not be mandatory in healthy patients who are not immunosuppressed. The medical history taken before acupuncture treatment should at least include enquiries about bleeding or wound healing disorders, immune deficiencies, possible heart diseases (for risk of bacteraemia), possible pregnancy, intake of medication and existing anatomical abnormalities.

The treatment usually just requires sterilised acupuncture needles.  Some practitioners, however, use electricity or heat.

My wife experience of acupuncture treatment it seen the effect to release stress and stiff muscle is very slow. I just send her for acupuncture for a few season. If compare to traditional massage the effect is more influence to the healing process. 

Traditional massage is more holistic in term of technique  used because during the process of massage for the whole body, massager will talk with the patient, the interaction of talking and massaging process is more effective to release stress. Traditional massage session take more than 3 to 4 hours for one session. This range of time my wife feel very convenience due to the massager slowly punch her finger to the various point of nerves and able to smooth the blood flow in the body system. Compare to acupuncture way of treatment, the time taken for one session is about 3 to 4 hours. 

Patient just lay down on the mate with needles insert to the skin and the patient has to stay tune for the long hours, some times my wife fell stress and not convenience . may this is one of the factor the acupuncture effectiveness to healing the stroke effect to my wife is not so fluent..

My wife experience with the acupuncture treatment is not the indication of failure, because some times other patient will get different effect after treated with acupuncture. Depend on the patient moody and their way of thinking and his confident to the method of treatment. Mind set of patient who going to treat also will give some impact to the process of healing to the stroke survivor,

Walahu’alam.