Acupuncture For Ulcerative Colitis Treatment

Review Of Clinical Studies Of The Treatment Of Ulcerative Colitis Using Acupuncture And Moxibustion

Citation Context

…d include three other RCTs . Three RCTs tested acupuncture plus moxibustion versus conventional medicines . Two RCTs compared acupuncture plus moxibustion with sulfasalazine =-=-=-. One RCT reported favorable effects of acupuncture plus moxibustion compared to drug therapy , while the two other RCTs failed to do so . The pooling of these three RCTs failed to showed f…

The Best Acupuncture Points To Treat Chronic Colitis Symptoms Are As Follows:

1. Tianshu ST25:

The point is located right at the level of the navel and it is 2 cun lateral to it. It is located halfway from the navel to the edge of the rectus abdominis muscle.

2. Zusanli ST36:

Zu San Li is a great point for treating gastrointestinal discomfort, nausea and vomiting, and stress and fatigue. You can locate it Zu San Li four finger widths down from the bottom of your knee cap, along the outer edge of your shin bone.

3. Guanyin :

It is located on the anterior median line of the lower abdomen, 3 cun below the umbilicus. It treats diarrhea, prolapse of rectum, and dyspepsia.

4. Shangjuxu :

It is located in the anterior aspect of the lower leg, 6 cun below ST 35, one finger-breadth right from the anterior crest of the tibia. It controls the intestines , Stomach and Spleen, alleviates dysentery and diarrhea and relieves pain.

5. Zhongwan :

The Conception Vessel 12 is also known as Ren 12, and is a potent point for everything related to digestion. It treats the symptoms of acute colitis such as bloating, gas, heartburn, indigestion, diarrhea, constipation and so on. It is located on the midline, 4 cun superior to the umbilicus.

6. Yinlingquan :

It is located right under the medial condyle of the tibia, in the indentation posterior and inferior to the medial border of the tibia. Some of the symptoms that the acupuncture point can treat are as follows: abdominal distention, water swelling, jaundice, diarrhea, genital pain and so on.

7. Sanyinjiao :

Vagal Control Of The Immune Response

In discussing the role of acupuncture in IBD, it is important to understand vagal control of the immune response . Inflammatory responses are complex and modulated by multiple factors including the nervous system. The vagus nerve innervates most of the GI tract and plays a crucial role in the homeostatic regulation of visceral functions via its parasympathetic effects. The anti-inflammatory role of the vagus nerve occurs through 3 pathways:

The cholinergic anti-inflammatory pathway is mediated through vagal efferent fibers that synapse onto enteric neurons, which release acetylcholine at the synaptic junction with immune cells. ACh binds to alpha-7-nicotinic ACh receptors of immune cells, leading to inhibition of release of tumor necrosis factor , a pro-inflammatory cytokine, that has been shown to play important roles in the pathogenesis of IBD.

Potential mechanism of action of acupuncture.

Also Check: Ulcers On Legs From Diabetes

Treatment For Ulcerative Colitis Relief With Acupuncture

Acupuncture treatment included treating the impaired areas including the shin and hip, but also included treatment of the abdomen and digestive regions along the back. Moxibustion was included to warm the channels and her digestive tract. I also gave her instructions to stop ice baths, cold raw food, and to drink ginger tea made from the root twice daily. In addition, her gastroenterologist prescribed suppositories to decrease inflammation in her colon.

Benefits Of Acupuncture For Ulcerative Colitis And Gastrointestinal Symptoms

Acupuncture can be used to relieve a variety of ailments.

It is thought to help treat conditions such as UC. Studies have shown that acupuncture can reduce inflammation and disease activity in people with IBD, such as UC and Crohns disease, which affects the entire gastrointestinal tract.

Acupuncture is also beneficial for IBD patients. It can help:

• Gut flora imbalance
• The function of the intestinal barrier
• intestinal motility dysfunction

Research shows that using hot acupuncture can improve many gastrointestinal symptoms, including:

• diarrhea
• nausea

Read Also: Ulcerative Colitis And Muscle Pain

Description Of The Literature

A total of 661 literatures were retrieved, and 121 remained after screening titles and abstracts. We read the full text of these 121 literatures, and by excluding 108 literatures we finally included 13 literatures . The screening process is shown in Fig. .

Fig. 1

Publication bias

Six types of comparisons were involved in the 13 trials included. Each type of comparison involved no more than 10 trials, so inverted funnel plots were not appropriate to be conducted to evaluate publication bias.

What Is Acupuncture And How It Can Impact Ulcerative Colitis

Acupuncture is a type of traditional Chinese medicine. This type of colitis treatment involves pricking or inserting small needles into specific points of the body at various depths.Acupuncture treats a wide number of conditions. Some of these common conditions include back pain, depression, arthritis, and fibromyalgia. It also has the potential to treat labor pain and menstrual cramps.

Don’t Miss: How Would You Know If You Had A Bleeding Ulcer

Acupuncture For Ulcerative Colitis

• Frequently Asked Questions

Acupuncture is a style of traditional Chinese medicine that has been used in the treatment of pain for thousands of years.

It can be used as a complementary therapy for a variety of chronic conditions, including ulcerative colitis .

People with UC, an inflammatory bowel disease affecting the large intestine, may find acupuncture beneficial in managing symptoms, including pain and gastrointestinal symptoms.

This article will discuss the basics of acupuncture, how the treatment may be beneficial for people with UC and other GI-related issues, and its known side effects.

Mind And Body Techniques

Stress doesn’t cause ulcerative colitis. But it can worsen the symptoms and trigger flare-ups. There are several ways you can try to ease it.

Biofeedback. This is a system that teaches you how to control things like muscle tension and rapid heartbeat. At first, a machine helps you recognize what your body is doing. You learn how to quiet the symptoms of stress, and you eventually stop needing the machine.

Deep breathing. You inhale from all the way down, making your tummy expand and pull back in. That helps relax the body, particularly the muscles in your belly. That can be good for your intestines.

Exercise. Physical activity, even if it’s mild, can make you feel better and release stress. But if you do too much or make your workout too hard, it might backfire. If you’re not active now, ask your doctor what types of exercise would be good to try.

Hypnosis. Sessions with a trained hypnotherapist can help you deal with stress and anxiety. Early research suggests that hypnosis may help relieve the inflammation involved in ulcerative colitis.

Progressive muscle relaxation. You tighten and release various muscle groups, going one group at a time. It’s simple to learn, and you can do it anywhere, anytime.

Also Check: How To Heal Leg Ulcers

Results After Treating With Acupuncture

After 1 session she experienced significant relief in her bloating and her energy improved for a few days after. She reported 1 episode of diarrhea with blood the week following. After three sessions, she had a complete recovery and has been back to her normal self biking and exercising for long durations of time. She was happy to admit completing a 20+ mile bike ride along the Hudson River during weekends.

Complementary Therapies For Ulcerative Colitis

When you have ulcerative colitis, you want to do whatever you can to keep it from flaring up. So you may be looking for anything that helps, in addition to the medicine and advice your doctor gives you.

Complementary, or integrative, medicine doesn’t replace your usual treatments. These are therapies you might try along with your regular medical care.

People in other parts of the world have used some of these methods, like acupuncture, for centuries. But they can be hard for researchers to study. So before you try anything, you should check with your doctor to make sure it won’t cause problems with your main treatment or cause side effects.

Read Also: Do You Still Have Ulcerative Colitis After Colectomy

Chinese Medicine Pattern Diagnosis

Unlike Western medicine, acupuncture and Chinese medicine do not have a one pill approach for health conditions like ulcerative colitis. We treat each patient as an individual, to establish balance in their body to restore their health. Five UC patients may receive five different Chinese medicine pattern diagnoses, depending on their particular symptoms.

For example, one patient may present with strong-smelling diarrhea, blood in the stools, urgency, night sweats, thirst, a red tongue, and a rapid, wiry pulse. Her pattern would most likely be Liver Fire in the Lower Jiao.

Appropriate acupuncture points for her treatment would include LV2, ST44, LI11, ST36, and LI4. An excellent Chinese herbal formula for her would be Long Dan Xie Gan Tang. This combination of acupuncture and herbs would quickly return her body to balance and reduce her debilitating symptoms. In other words, the treatment would help her own body heal itself.

What Is Ulcerative Colitis

Ulcerative colitis is a sort of inflammatory bowel disease that affects the large intestines. UC causes inflammation and ulcers along the lining of the colon. There is no treatment for UC, but working with your physician and starting a treatment program can decrease the seriousness of your symptoms. This may also bring about periods of remission, which is when your symptoms go away. Classic medication for this condition consists of anti-inflammatory drugs and immunosuppressant drugs. These medications work to prevent inflammatory reactions. Even if medications improve your symptoms and quality of life, UC is a lifelong illness. Episodes of bloody stools, diarrhea, and stomach pain may return.

When medication alone does not maintain your body in remission, it may be time to check into alternative or complementary treatment programs like acupuncture. Notice significant lessening of pain and inflammation after 5 or 6 acupuncture visits. The overall treatment is between 1 to 2 months, depending on the seriousness of the condition.

Besides acupuncture, dietary adjustment associated with your body type is advised to help alleviate the problems and to avoid future occurrences. Although food allergy and intolerant evaluations with skin prick test, oral challenge test, and IgE blood test might show harmful foods that are causing the problem in your intestines, a body type identification will show extra ingredients, which are the culprit.

Fatigue

Anemia

Also Check: What Not To Eat With Bleeding Ulcers

Acupuncture And Herbs Treat Ulcerative Colitis An Inflammatory Bowel Disease

Ulcerative colitis is an inflammatory bowel disease , that cause long-lasting inflammation and ulcers in the digestive tract. Ulcerative colitis affects the innermost lining of large intestine and rectum. Ulcerative colitis can be difficult to diagnose because its symptoms are similar to other intestinal disorders and to another type of IBD called Crohns disease. Crohns disease differs from ulcerative colitis because it causes inflammation deeper within the intestinal wall. Also, Crohns disease usually occurs in the small intestine, although it can also occur in the mouth, esophagus, stomach, duodenum, large intestine, appendix, and anus.

The inflammation of ulcerative colitis makes the colon empty frequently, causing diarrhea. Ulcers form in places where the inflammation has killed the cells lining the colon the ulcers bleed and produce pus. Other complications are hole in the colon , Severe dehydration, Liver disease , Bone loss , Inflammation of skin, joints and eyes, and sores in the lining of mouth.

Usually treatment involved with Anti-inflammatory drugs such as Aminosalicylates and Corticosteroids, Antibiotics, Anti-diarrheal medications, Pain relievers,Iron supplements and surgery. For mild pain, your doctor may recommend acetaminophen but not ibuprofen , naproxen sodium , and diclofenac sodium , which can worsen symptoms and increase the severity of disease.

Gi Symptoms And Acupuncture

Increased intestinal sensitivity leading to abdominal pain and diarrhea, as well as delayed bowel movement are common among IBD patients. Some studies evaluated stimulation of specific acupoints and reported that these symptoms can be improved by acupuncture. Through both clinical trials and analysis of the published literature, moxibustion was found beneficial for improvement of abdominal pain and diarrhea in patients with intestinal sensitivity.

Read Also: Best Grain For Horses With Ulcers

Animal Studies Of Acupuncture In Inflammatory Bowel Disease

Acupuncture, electroacupuncture, and moxibustion have been shown to have several beneficial effects in rats with TNBS-induced colitis, including improving weight loss and diarrhea ameliorating inflammatory profiles with reduction of neutrophil myeloperoxidase activity , decrease of inducible nitric oxide synthase expression, increase of serum IL-10,, and downregulation of serum TNF- and IL1- and colonic TNF- mRNA expression, and attenuating adhesion and macroscopic damage scores. In a recent study, Jin et al. assessed the anti-inflammatory effects of electroacupuncture and the combination of 2 therapies in colitis rats and found that both electroacupuncture and the combination therapy reduced disease activity index scores , decreased pro-inflammatory cytokines and MPO, and improved macroscopic inflammation . They attributed the anti-inflammatory effects to enhanced vagal tone and reduced sympathetic activity, as assessed by measuring electrocardiography. Although they also reported that the combination of electroacupuncture plus VNS was more efficient than electroacupuncture therapy alone, they did not optimize the number of acupoints and stimulated only 1 acupoint . Supporting these findings are the results of a study that showed that moxibustion via multi-acupoint was superior to a single/2 acupoints in improving Disease Activity Index and inflammatory markers such as TNF- in colitis rats.

What To Expect During An Acupuncture Session

During an acupuncture visit, an acupuncturist will ask about your medical history and any symptoms youre experiencing and examine you. Then a treatment plan will be created based on their evaluation of the causes and perpetuating factors for your concerns, similar to other health practitioners.

For the specific acupuncture treatment, theyll have you sit or lie down on a table, often in a dimly lit room, and they will insert needles into acupuncture points on areas of your body. Needles typically remain inserted between 20 and 45 minutes while you rest comfortably in the treatment room. Some practitioners may also include moxibustion, cupping, acupressure, electrical stimulation to the needles, or external heat to your body.

• Floating with a tingling, warm sensation
• Heaviness, heat, and cold

How frequently you’ll need to receive acupuncture depends on what you are seeking relief from. If you have a chronic issue, you may need to go more frequently than if you have an acute problem. The College of Traditional Chinese Medicine Practitioners and Acupuncturists of Newfoundland and Labrador points out that a small number of patients will experience a worsening of symptoms as the bodys energies are returning to normal, but this is usual and is followed quickly by improvement.

You May Like: Air Mattress For Pressure Ulcer Prevention

Acupuncture & Herbs Relieve Ulcerative Colitis

Details

06/03/2014

Researchers conclude that acupuncture combined with herbal medicine helps to eliminate ulcerative colitis. Researchers at the Hospital of Handan City conducted a unique experiment. They wanted to know if acupuncture and herbal medicine combined with pharmaceutical medications is more effective than using only drugs. The results were overwhelmingly supportive of adding acupuncture and herbal medicine to conventional medication protocols. The study group receiving acupuncture and herbs combined with drugs had a total effective rate of 93.1%. The group that only received drugs had a 75.86% total effective rate. The researchers concluded that acupuncture and herbal medicine consistently enhances clinical outcomes for patients with ulcerative colitis.

The research team randomly divided 58 ulcerative colitis patients into two study groups. Group 1 received acupuncture, herbal medicine and mesalazine. Group 2 received only mesalazine. Oral administration of mesalazine enteric coated tablets at a dose of 1g per dose, 4 times daily, was given to both groups. One course of treatment consisted of eight weeks. Mesalazine is an anti-inflammatory medication primarily used for treating inflammatory bowel diseases. Mesalazines primary action is in the intestines and it is used in the treatment of ulcerative colitis and Crohns disease.

The Impact Of Acupuncture On Ulcerative Colitis

Acupuncture treatment is said to be a very effective therapy for ulcerative colitis as it has the power to stimulate the bodys natural painkillers. This helps your body control inflammation, and reduce the chances of contracting diseases and reduce pain associated with chronic colitis.

The chief aim of the therapy is to restore and encourage the flow of energy throughout the body. Correcting this imbalance can activate the healing process such as healing, promoting relaxation, and relieving pain.

There is no concrete proof to show that acupuncture and moxibustion can be used to complement the drug treatment. Other studies explored the option of using acupuncture and moxibustion therapy alone.

One requires more research to determine the effectiveness of acupuncture for acute colitis in improving bowel inflammation. Acupuncture is generally safe for chronic colitis symptoms and offers some great health benefits. You will know whether it works if you give it a try.

Read Also: What Should You Not Eat With An Ulcer

How Does Acupuncture View Ulcerative Colitis

How does acupuncture view UC?

Acupuncture is one of the traditional Chinese medicine components. This kind of treatment involves pricking or inserting tiny needles into various points of the body at different depths. The objective of therapy is to restore the flow of energy throughout the entire body. Correcting this imbalance promotes relaxation, stimulates healing, and alleviates pain. Acupuncture has been widely utilized to treat an assortment of conditions. A few of them include arthritis, back pain, depression, and fibromyalgia. Additionally, it is used to soothe labor pain and menstrual cramps.

From the view of TCM, ulcerative colitis could be caused by the invasion of the exterior pathogenic factors, inherent deficiencies, or an unbalanced diet.