Observation on therapeutic effect of combined therapy mainly based on acupuncture for postherpetic neuralgia

ObjectiveTo compare the difference in therapeutic effect between the combined therapy mainly based on acupuncture and western medicine in treating postherpetic neuralgia.MethodsEighty patients were randomly divided into a treatment group and a control group by ballot, and 40 patients were included in each group. The patients in the treatment group were treated by using the combined therapy mainly based on acupuncture, in other words, electroacupuncture at Jiáj ( EX-B2) and acupoint injection, and He-Ne laser therapy was also carried out. The patients in the control group were orally administered with 10 mg oxycodone controlled release tablets, twice a day; 0.5 mg mecobalamin tablets, three times a day. Scores for pain, sleep disorders and anxiety degree of the patients were recorded respectively, and the therapeutic effect in the two groups was counted.ResultsThe total effective rate in the treatment group was 100.0% (40/40), which was higher than 87.5% (35/40) in the control group; the markedly effective rate in the treatment group was 85.0% (34/40), which was better than 65.0% (26/40) in the control group (both P<0.05). The therapeutic effects in reliefing pain, sleep disorders and anxiety of the patients in the treatment group were better than that in the control group (all P<0.01).ConclusionThe combined therapy mainly based on acupuncture can effectively treat postherpetic neuralgia and the therapeutic effect is better than that in the western medicine group.