ANALGESIC EFFECT OF ACUPOINT LASER IRRADIATION ON INCISION AFTER SURGICAL OPERATION

Sun Tao, Yu Zuo, Song Peixiao

(Rongcheng County People's Hospital, Shandong)

Wang Youliang

(The Third Hospital of Beijing Medical College, Beijing)

Considerable amounts of clinical and animal experiments had demonstrated for a long time to show the analgesic effect manifested after laser irradiation on acupoint. But almost all of these studies was carried out under man-made painful stimulants. It was held that such studies made sense only when pathological pain existed. Therefore, our experiments were performed on patients with incising pain after surgical operations. Analgesic effects of acupoint laser irradiation, electro-acupuncture, and dolantinum administration were evaluated and compared clinically.

Subjects: 15 patients with incising pain after thoracic or abdominal operation were investigated. Male, 7; female, 8. General state was, fairly well; complications none. Remained fully conscious and could express their perceptions correctly.

Methods of analgesia: Patients were divided randomly into three groups (A,B,C). There were 5 patients per each group.

Group A: Laser irradiation on ZusanH of both sides. He-Ne laser was used (Power, 3 mW; diameter of irradiation spot, 2mm; projecting distance, 10-15 cm,).

Group B: Electro-acupuncture on Zusanli of both sides. Electric acupuncture apparatus: G6805 type. Frequency, 5-7 Hz; intensity, to the extent that could be tolerated by the patient.

Group C: Dolantinum 50 mg im.

Methods of investigation: Three grade scoring method was used. After experiments started, patients were examined every 10 min. and asked about their sense of pain. Blood pressures and pulse rates were about their sense of pain. Blood pressures and pulse rates were measured. Time of observation was 30 min. in all. Scores were summed up to estimate the analgesic effect. Relative values of variation were analysed statistically.

Results: Fairly good analgesic effects were obtained through acupoint laser irradiation. After 30 min., total score increased by 580%. Compared to the other two groups, total score of the acuponit laser irradiation group was similar to that of the electro-acupuncture group but definitely less than that of the dolantinum administration group (633%).

As to the time course, the analgesic effect of acupoint laser irradiation appeared more early and more stable than the other two groups.

Acupoint laser irradiation had the same effect as traditional Chinese acupuncture and there were no pain and no injury to the patient.