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Za ljudi, ki bolehajo za sindromom karpalnega kanala, občutkom otrplosti, ščemenjem ali bolečino v roki zaradi ukleščenega živca v zapestju, obstaja novo upanje. Prihaja v obliki neinvazivne metode za lajšanje bolečin brez zdravil: glede na raziskavo, objavljeno v reviji Brain, je to akupunktura.
Raziskovalci iz Splošne bolnišnice Massachusetts so rekruitirali 80 ljudi z blagim do srednje močnim sindromom karpalnega kanala. To je idealno stanje za merjenje učinkovitosti zdravljenja, saj je za razliko od večine motenj s kroničnimi bolečinami sindrom karpalnega kanala povezan z izmerljivimi fiziološkimi spremembami v telesu. Bolniki doživljajo upočasnitev živčnih impulzov, ki potujejo čez zapestje, kar je lahko zaznano s pomočjo elektrod, pritrjenih na kožo. Občutijo tudi uničujoče spremembe v somatosenzoričnem predelu možganske skorje, ki je del možganov, odgovoren za zaznavanje tipa.
Ljudje, udeleženi v raziskavi, so bili razdeljeni v tri skupine, med katerimi sta dve v roku osmih tednov prejeli 16 terapij elektroakupunkture bodisi na obolelo zapestje in podlaket bodisi na gleženj, ki je na nasprotni strani oboleli roki. Tretja skupina je prejela lažno elektroakupunkturo, ki je vsebovala igle, ki kože na lažnih akupresurnih točkah niso prebodle.
Po koncu terapij so vse tri skupine poročale o izboljšanju glede bolečine in otrplosti. Vendar pa je rezultat sledeč: objektivni kazalec živčne prevodnosti zapestja se je izboljšal le pri skupini, ki je bila deležna prave akupunkture. Tisti, ki so prejemali akupunkturo na oboleli rami (vendar ne na gležnju), so tudi doživeli znatno reorganizacijo delovanja možganov. MRI slike prej-in-potem so pokazale, da se je del škode na somatosenzoričnem delu možganske skorje, ki je bil povezan s karpalnim kanalom, deloma zmanjšala.
Raziskava potrjuje, da ima prava akupunktura, medtem ko morda obe prava in lažna akupunktura začasno lajšata bolečine, največ potenciala za dolgotrajnejšo spremembo. Pri ljudeh, ki so prejemali pravo akupunkturo, se je zdelo, da se kažejo dolgoročnejše koristi. Po trimesečnem nadaljevanju raziskave je bilo pri ljudeh, ki so doživeli reorganizacijo v delovanju možganov, precej verjetneje, da so poročali o trajnem ali nadaljnjem izboljšanju v funkcionalnosti in simptomih, kot so bolečina, otrplost in ščemenje.
Akupunktura bi lahko bila prvo izbrana terapija
Če je izvajana s strani izurjenega profesionalca, je precej varna in ima majhno tveganje stranskih učinkov. Zagotovo je nekaj, kar bi lahko poskusili, preden presedlate na nekaj invazivnejšega in bolj tveganega.
vir: http://time.com/4690200/acupuncture-carpal-tunnel-syndrome/
prevod: Tanja Topić
vir fotografij: internet
Scientific findings on how acupuncture help with carpal tunnel syndrome
There’s new hope for people who suffer from carpal tunnel syndrome, a feeling of numbness, tingling or pain in the hand because of a squeezed nerve at the wrist. It comes in the form of a non-invasive and drug-free method of pain relief: acupuncture, according to a new study published in the journal Brain.
Researchers from Massachusetts General Hospital recruited 80 people with mild to moderate carpal tunnel syndrome. It’s an ideal condition for measuring the effectiveness of a treatment, because unlike most chronic pain disorders, carpal tunnel syndrome is associated with measurable, physiological changes in the body. Sufferers experience a slowdown of nerve impulses traveling across the wrist, which can be detected by electrodes attached to the skin. They also experience destructive changes in the somatosensory cortex, the part of the brain responsible for the sense of touch.
People in the study were split into three groups, two of which received 16 sessions of electro-acupuncture over eight weeks, either on their affected wrist and forearm or on their ankle opposite that arm. The third group received “sham” electro-acupuncture, which used needles that didn’t penetrate the skin on fake acupuncture points.
After the treatments were over, all three groups reported improvements in pain and numbness. But the objective measure of nerve conduction at the wrist only improved in the groups who had real acupuncture. Those who had real acupuncture at the affected arm (but not at the ankle) also experienced significant brain remapping. Before-and-after MRI scans showed that some of the carpal-tunnel related damage to their somatosensory cortexes had been partially repaired.
The study suggests that while sham and real acupuncture might both relieve pain temporarily, real acupuncture has the most potential for lasting change. People who got real acupuncture seemed to have longer term benefits. At a three-month follow-up, people who experienced brain remapping were more likely to report sustained or continued improvement in functionality—and in symptoms like pain, numbness, and tingling—than those who didn’t.
Acupuncture could be a good first-line treatment.
When performed by a trained professional, it’s fairly safe and has a low risk of side effects. It’s definitely something that could be tried before moving to something much more invasive and higher risk.
source: http://time.com/4690200/acupuncture-carpal-tunnel-syndrome/
source of photographs: internet
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