Am J Chin Med. 1999 ; 27(2): 143-8.

Effects of acupuncture and an agonist of opiate receptors on heroin dependent patients.

Timofeev MF.

Research-Practical Center for Reflexotherapy for Alcoholism, Moscow, Russia.

This study examined the influence of acupuncture and an agonist of opiate receptors (Procedol) by means of temperature in both the left and right auricular "Lung" points, and on the coefficient of interhemisphere asymmetry. Twenty heroin dependent patients participated in this research. They were evenly divided into two groups. Both groups consisted of 10 male drug addicts (18-19 years old) who had been using heroin for 8-10 months. Group 1 received 1.0 ml procedol (i.m.). Group 2 were treated with acupuncture. Temperature was measured on the acupuncture points before and after treatment. Results of this study showed that temperature increased on the left and decreased on the right acupuncture points in both the procedol and acupuncture treated groups. The net changes before and after treatment were 92.87% and 92.53% in groups 1 and 2 respectively. The therapeutic effect of acupuncture on treatment of heroin dependence is through the same pathway as the agonist on opiate receptors, 20% of patients are resisted to acupuncture.