What is acupuncture therapy?

Acupuncture therapy first appeared in the "Emergency Prescriptions for the Elbow" of the Jin Dynasty, and it has a history of thousands of years. It originated from the hardworking ancestors in southern my country. Acupuncture therapy is very convenient to obtain materials, has good efficacy, and rarely has side effects. In addition to being used alone, it can also be used in combination with other medicines for treatment. Therefore, it is widely used by the general public. So what exactly is acupuncture therapy?

1. Operation method

This therapy includes two methods: fluid selection and fat selection.

1. Liquid picking method (needle picking four seam points):

(1) Use a three-edged needle (or a round needle or sewing needle), sterilize it by high pressure, soak it in 75% alcohol for 30 minutes, or boil it for 20 minutes, then take it out and place it in a sterilization box for later use.

(2) Wash the child's palms and apply 2% iodine tincture to them. After they are slightly dry, use 75% alcohol to wipe and disinfect the transverse lines of the first and second interphalangeal joints on the ventral side of the 2nd, 3rd, 4th, and 5th fingers on the palm surface of the child from the center to the periphery.

(3) Use a sterilized three-edged needle to prick the center of the horizontal line, aim at the point of prick, and quickly pierce the needle obliquely to a depth of one centimeter in the direction of the center. Slightly lift and shake. The operator presses the left hand on the ventral surface of the first knuckle in the direction of the needle tip, and then removes the needle. A small amount of sticky yellow liquid can be seen at the needle hole (there may also be a large amount of clear liquid exuding). Use your fingers to squeeze the liquid out until blood appears, and then wipe it off with a sterilized dry cotton ball. All eight fingers of the child's hands are pricked one by one. If bleeding occurs, press it with a dry cotton ball. Instruct the child (or the parents to help) to clench his fists to apply pressure to stop the bleeding.

(4) In severe cases of malnutrition, thick mucus will be expelled when the puncture is performed. In mild cases, mucus mixed with blood will be expelled. In cases that have not yet developed into malnutrition, there will be no mucus but blood will be seen. The needle is pricked once every other day or every 2 or 3 days. Generally, the needle is pricked 3-6 times. The mucus will gradually decrease until there is no mucus and only blood is seen.

2. Fat picking method (needle picking of malnutrition points):

(1) Use a three-edged needle and sterilize it by high pressure, or soak it in 75% alcohol for 30 minutes, or boil it for 20 minutes. Take it out and place it in a sterilization box for later use.

(2) Wash the child's palms and apply 2% iodine tincture to them. After they are slightly dry, use 75% alcohol to wipe and disinfect the middle of the first and second knuckles of the 2nd, 3rd, 4th and 5th fingers of the child, i.e. the malnutrition point, from the center to the periphery.

(3) Pressing hand: Because fat picking involves picking up the subcutaneous fat layer and removing fat masses, it is easy to bleed, so the pressing hand should be fully utilized to press the fat and stop bleeding. Ask an assistant to help. The operator and the assistant hold the child's fingers with their left hands, and use the left thumbs to slide and press towards themselves, across the picking points several times, and then fix them next to the picking points, pressing hard to keep them still. The purpose is to drain local blood, apply pressure to stop bleeding, and expose the skin at the selected point so that subcutaneous fat can be easily squeezed out.

(4) The operator holds the needle in his right hand and aims at the center of the picking point. Using the "picking point method", he quickly picks open the skin layer and enters the subcutaneous tissue. The subcutaneous fat bodies will soon burst out of the needle hole due to the pressure of the two fingers. Then use the needle tip to pick and scrape to cut the sparse fibers distributed on the fat mass, squeeze out the fat bodies as much as possible, and finally use the needle body to scrape off the fat remaining at the needle hole.

(5) After the operation, apply red mercurochrome to the needle hole, seal it with a sterile gauze pad, and then bandage it with a bandage and apply pressure for 3-5 minutes to prevent bleeding. Before the needle hole is sealed, the operator and the assistant must not relax their grip, otherwise bleeding may occur.

(6) After the operation, instruct the child (or parent) not to contaminate the wound. The wound can be opened after 5 days.

(7) Because the needle hole is deep and the pressure is applied, there is a lot of bleeding, and a tiny wound must be bandaged with gauze pads. Do not open the package, wash your hands, or pick up other objects with your hands after 5 days to prevent infection.

This method is not as simple and safe as needle poking the Sifeng acupoint, but the therapeutic effect is similar, so needle poking the Sifeng acupoint is often used in clinical practice.

2. Therapeutic Mechanism

Sifeng is an extra meridian acupoint, which is intrinsically connected with the triple energizer, life gate, liver and small intestine. Clinical observation shows that it has the effects of calming the liver and purging the heart, regulating the spleen and stomach. Acupuncture can adjust the triple energizer, dry dampness and expel parasites, and regulate the spleen and produce essence. Some doctors use this method specifically to treat infantile malnutrition; others use it in combination with decoctions as an auxiliary therapy. Some scholars have proposed that needle poking at the four seams can not only be used for treatment, but also has significance for differential diagnosis and prognosis.

Modern medical research shows that acupuncture at the Sifeng point can increase saliva secretion, enhance the effect of salivary amylase, and increase the content of trypsin, pancreatic amylase, and pancreatic lipase in the intestine (digestive strength). For patients with malnutrition and rickets, after acupuncture at the Sifeng point, it was found that serum calcium and phosphorus increased, and the activity of alkaline phosphatase decreased. As a result, the product of calcium and phosphorus increased, which is helpful for the bone development and growth of the children.

3. Clinical Application

Therapy is used for pediatric digestive and respiratory diseases.