J Tradit Chin Med. 2001 Dec; 21(4): 270-2.

The effect of electro-acupuncture on motor function recovery in patients with acute cerebral infarction: a randomly controlled trial.

Pei J, Sun L, Chen R, Zhu T, Qian Y, Yuan D.

Longhua Hospital, Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shanghai 200032.

The aim of this study is to investigate the effect of electro-acupuncture treatment in acute phase of cerebral infarction on the motor functions. In this randomly controlled trial, 86 patients were allocated to two groups, the experimental group given clinical and electro-acupuncture treatments for a period of 4 weeks, and the control group given clinical treatment plus active and/or passive functional exercise. The result showed that the level of impairment and disability in both groups were improvement according to the Chinese Stroke Scale, Brunnstrom-Fugl-Meyer score, and Barthel Index throughout the study and 3 months after. The motor functions and the activities of daily living (ADL) were improved significantly in the electro-acupuncture group as compared with the control group (P < 0.05). Also, the results showed greater reduction of neurological deficit in the electro-acupuncture group than in the control group. CONCLUSION: Early acupuncture treatment for acute stroke patients may improve motor functions, and consequently the activities of daily living.