Detail information
ID ENCL000138
Year 2002
Surgery Hysterectomy
Acupoint
Acupoint Code
Zusanli ST36
Side bilaterally
Description bilateral acupuncture points (Zusanli, also known as ST-36)
Experimental Description One hundred healthy consenting women undergoing lower abdominal surgery were randomly assigned to four treatment regimens: Group I (n =25), control; Group II (n=25), sham-EA (needle insertion without electrical stimulation); Group III (n =25), low-EA (2 Hz of electrical stimulation); and Group IV (n =25), high-EA (100 Hz of electrical stimulation). EA groups received needle insertion with or without electrical stimulation 20 min prior to anesthesia. All patients received patient-controlled analgesia (PCA) of morphine postoperation.
Sample Count 100
Age ＞18
Control
Sham
Freq
Blank
control(n=25); sham-EA(n=25)
Experiment low-EA(n=25); high-EA(n=25)
Indicator Visual analog scale(VAS) Number of PCA demands Time of the first required analgesic Total amount of morphine required by PCA Heart rate(HR) Blood pressure(BP) SpO2 Opioid-related adverse effects Nausea Vomiting Dizziness Pruritus
Auxiliary Medication After removal of the needles, anesthesia was induced with i.v. thiopental 5 mg/kg and succinylcholine 2 mg/kg for tracheal intubation. Isoflurane in nitrous oxide 60% with oxygen 40% and an intermittent dose of atracurium were used for anesthesia maintenance without the use of opioids. Following surgery, all patients were transported to the recovery room. The time interval of the patient’s first request for pain medication was recorded (either pethidine 1 mg/kg i.m. during the first hour, which was restricted to a single dose, or as recorded by PCA when no request was made during the first hour). At 1 h postoperation, the PCA system was connected to the patient. The PCA device was programmed to intravenously deliver 2 mg morphine as ‘on demand’ doses with a minimum lockout interval of 10 min during the following 23 h.
Stimulation Method EA
Induction Method
Electroacupuncture Instrument Model Manufacturer Frequency Waveform Strength Induction Time
Trio 300 I. T. O., Japan 2/100 Hz - 0.5 mA; 1 ms square pulse 20 min

Acupuncture_Needle Needle_Manufacturer Needle_Depth
30 gauge stainless steel acupuncture needles - -

Description Two 30 gauge stainless steel acupuncture needles were inserted at the Zusanli point on both legs, with a distance between the needles of approximately 3 cm, i.e. one needle serving as the positive pole, and the other as the negative pole to allow electrical stimulation of the selected point. After the patient reported the sensation of 'De-Qi', a term used in acupunc- ture to describe a feeling of 'heaviness' in the area surrounding the insertion locus, an electric current was delivered by a Functions Electrical Stimulator (Trio 300, I. T. O., Japan). Subjects and electrical equipment were placed such that subjects were unable to see any specifics regarding the type of current administered, and technicians maintained a normal persona to ensure that patients remained unaware of their grouping category. Electricity was generated as an output of constant current of 0.5 mA, 1 ms square pulse, at a maximal tolerable intensity (a strong, but not painful sensation as reported by the patient), and at 2 or 100 Hz depending on the group assignment. Sham-EA included needle insertion with the indicator light on but with no actual current. All patients were subject to the respective treatment modality for 20 min before the induction of anesthesia.
Anesthesia Method
AAA
Clinical Trial Type randomly
Contraindications Patients with a history of opioid abuse, or significant cardiovascular, pulmonary, renal, hepatic or neurological disease were excluded
Effector We found that the time of first analgesic requested was 10, 18, 28, and 28 min in the control, sham-, low-, and high-EA groups, respectively. During the first 24 h, the total amount of morphine required was decreased by 21, 43 and 61% in the sham-, low- and high-EA groups, respectively. The incidence of nausea and dizziness during the first 24 h after surgery was significantly reduced in both the low-EA and high-EA groups compared with the control and sham-EA groups. We also found that sham-EA exerts a beneficial effect with respect to its pain relieving quality but not the side effect profiles. Our findings demonstrates that preoperative treatment with low-EA and high-EA can reduce postoperative analgesic requirements and associated side effects in patients undergoing lower abdominal surgery.
Positive
Literature
PMID 12406527
Title The effect of high and low frequency electroacupuncture in pain after lower abdominal surgery.
Abstract In the present study, we examined the effects of preoperative electroacupuncture (EA) at classical bilateral acupuncture points (Zusanli, also known as ST-36) on postoperative pain and opioid-related side effects. One hundred healthy consenting women undergoing lower abdominal surgery were randomly assigned to four treatment regimens: Group I (n=25), control; Group II (n=25), sham-EA (needle insertion without electrical stimulation); Group III (n=25), low-EA (2 Hz of electrical stimulation); and Group IV (n=25), high-EA (100 Hz of electrical stimulation). EA groups received needle insertion with or without electrical stimulation 20 min prior to anesthesia. All patients received patient-controlled analgesia (PCA) of morphine postoperation. Postoperative pain was evaluated by recording (1). the time of the first required analgesic, (2). the number of PCA demands, (3). the total amount of morphine required by PCA, and (4) patients' VAS pain score. We found that the time of first analgesic requested was 10, 18, 28, and 28 min in the control, sham-, low-, and high-EA groups, respectively. During the first 24h, the total amount of morphine required was decreased by 21, 43 and 61% in the sham-, low- and high-EA groups, respectively. The incidence of nausea and dizziness during the first 24h after surgery was significantly reduced in both the low-EA and high-EA groups compared with the control and sham-EA groups. We also found that sham-EA exerts a beneficial effect with respect to its pain relieving quality but not the side effect profiles. Our findings demonstrates that preoperative treatment with low-EA and high-EA can reduce postoperative analgesic requirements and associated side effects in patients undergoing lower abdominal surgery."
Souce Pain. 2002 Oct;99(3):509-514. doi: 10.1016/S0304-3959(02)00261-0.