Therapeutic observation of thin-cotton moxibustion plus surround needling for herpes zoster

• Published in: Journal of acupuncture and tuina science Vol. 14; no. 3; pp. 197 - 201
• Main Author: Song, Hai-yun
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Berlin/Heidelberg Springer Berlin Heidelberg 01.06.2016; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Acupuncture; Clinical Study; Herpes viruses; Medicine; Medicine & Public Health; Acupuncture-moxibustion Therapy; A; Herpes Zoster; Acupuncture Therapy; Acyclovir; 围刺; R246.6; 带状疱疹; 灸法; Surround Needling; Moxibusiton Therapy; 针灸疗法; 针刺疗法; 阿昔洛韦
• ISSN: 1672-3597; 1993-0399
• DOI: 10.1007/s11726-016-0924-4

Objective To compare the clinical efficacies between thin-cotton moxibustion plus surround needling and Western medication in treating herpes zoster (HZ). Methods Eighty-three HZ patients were divided into two groups according to their admission sequence, 41 cases in the thin-cotton moxibustion group and 42 cases in the Western medication group. The thin-cotton moxibustion group received thin-cotton moxibustion on the surface of lesions plus surround needling around the lesions, once a day. The Western medication group was intervened by Acyclovir intravenous injection, 0.25 g per dose, once a day, along with external application of Acyclovir cream 3-5 times a day. After 10-day treatment, the blister-healing time, crusting time, pain-reducing time, onset time of action, lesion-healed time, and occurrence of post-herpetic neuralgia (PHN) were compared. Results During the study, a case dropped out in the thin-cotton moxibustion group, and 2 cases dropped out in the Western medication group. The recovery and markedly-effective rate was 92.5% and total effective rate was 97.5% in the thin-cotton moxibustion group, versus 72.5% and 87.5% in the Western medication group, and the between-group differences were statistically significant ( P <0.05). The blister-healing time, crusting time, pain-reducing time, onset time of action and lesion-healed time in the thin-cotton moxibustion group were significantly shorter than those in the Western medication group ( P <0.05). The occurrence rate of PHN was 2.07% in the thin-cotton moxibustion group, significantly lower than 9.19% in the Western medication group ( P <0.01). Conclusion Thin-cotton moxibustion plus surround needling can produce a more significant efficacy than Acyclovir in treating HZ, and it can markedly reduce the occurrence of PHN.