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Abstract
Background
Hemiplegia, a common neurological consequence of moderate to severe traumatic brain injury (TBI) significantly impacts patients' motor and daily living functions. In China, standard treatments for hemiplegia include physical rehabilitation and traditional acupuncture. Scalp acupuncture, rooted in traditional Chinese medicine, has gained attention as a potential alternative. This study compared the efficacy of scalp acupuncture combined with conventional therapy versus conventional therapy alone in improving limb function recovery in patients with hemiplegia after moderate to severe TBI.
Methods
This open-label, single-site, parallel-group randomized trial included 117 patients with hemiplegia post-TBI. Patients were randomized into a control group (n = 58) receiving conventional interventions, and a scalp acupuncture group (n = 59) receiving scalp acupuncture in addition to conventional care. Scalp acupuncture was administered daily for 8 weeks using standardized acupuncture points. Outcome measures included the Brunnstrom Hemiplegia Motor Function Scale, the Fugl-Meyer Assessment (FMA) scale, the modified Barthel Index (MBI), cerebral blood flow assessment (via color Doppler ultrasonography), and serum brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) levels.
Results
The scalp acupuncture group demonstrated significantly greater improvements in Brunnstrom scale scores, with higher proportions of patients achieving advanced recovery levels (P = 0.015). FMA and MBI scores showed superior improvements in motor function and daily living abilities in the scalp acupuncture group compared to controls (P < 0.05). Enhanced cerebral blood flow velocities and volumes were observed in the scalp acupuncture group, particularly in the anterior and middle cerebral arteries (P < 0.01). Serum BDNF levels were significantly elevated in the scalp acupuncture group post-treatment, suggesting enhanced neural repair.
Conclusions
This study provides evidence that scalp acupuncture combined with conventional therapy can significantly improve motor function, daily living abilities, and neural recovery markers in patients with hemiplegia following moderate to severe TBI. These findings warrant larger, multicenter trials to evaluate the long-term efficacy of scalp acupuncture and to determine its role as a potential gold standard for hemiplegia treatment in neurological rehabilitation.
Supplementary Materials
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Editor-in-Chief
László ROSIVALL (Semmelweis University, Budapest, Hungary)
Managing Editor
Anna BERHIDI (Semmelweis University, Budapest, Hungary)
Co-Editors
- Gábor SZÉNÁSI (Semmelweis University, Budapest, Hungary)
- Ákos KOLLER (Semmelweis University, Budapest, Hungary)
- Zsolt RADÁK (University of Physical Education, Budapest, Hungary)
- László LÉNÁRD (University of Pécs, Hungary)
- Zoltán UNGVÁRI (Semmelweis University, Budapest, Hungary)
Assistant Editors
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- Zsuzsanna MIKLÓS (Semmelweis University, Budapest, Hungary)
- György NÁDASY (Semmelweis University, Budapest, Hungary)
Hungarian Editorial Board
- György BENEDEK (University of Szeged, Hungary)
- Zoltán BENYÓ (Semmelweis University, Budapest, Hungary)
- Mihály BOROS (University of Szeged, Hungary)
- László CSERNOCH (University of Debrecen, Hungary)
- Magdolna DANK (Semmelweis University, Budapest, Hungary)
- László DÉTÁRI (Eötvös Loránd University, Budapest, Hungary)
- Zoltán GIRICZ (Semmelweis University, Budapest, Hungary and Pharmahungary Group, Szeged, Hungary)
- Zoltán HANTOS (Semmelweis University, Budapest and University of Szeged, Hungary)
- Zoltán HEROLD (Semmelweis University, Budapest, Hungary)
- László HUNYADI (Semmelweis University, Budapest, Hungary)
- Gábor JANCSÓ (University of Pécs, Hungary)
- Zoltán KARÁDI (University of Pecs, Hungary)
- Miklós PALKOVITS (Semmelweis University, Budapest, Hungary)
- Gyula PAPP (University of Szeged, Hungary)
- Gábor PAVLIK (University of Physical Education, Budapest, Hungary)
- András SPÄT (Semmelweis University, Budapest, Hungary)
- Gyula SZABÓ (University of Szeged, Hungary)
- Zoltán SZELÉNYI (University of Pécs, Hungary)
- Lajos SZOLLÁR (Semmelweis University, Budapest, Hungary)
- József TOLDI (MTA-SZTE Neuroscience Research Group and University of Szeged, Hungary)
- Árpád TÓSAKI (University of Debrecen, Hungary)
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- Christopher H. FRY (University of Bristol, UK)
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- George KUNOS (National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, USA)
- Massoud MAHMOUDIAN (Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran)
- Tadaaki MANO (Gifu University of Medical Science, Japan)
- Luis Gabriel NAVAR (Tulane University School of Medicine, New Orleans, USA)
- Hitoo NISHINO (Nagoya City University, Japan)
- Ole H. PETERSEN (Cardiff University, UK)
- Ulrich POHL (German Centre for Cardiovascular Research and Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Planegg, Germany)
- Andrej A. ROMANOVSKY (University of Arizona, USA)
- Anwar Ali SIDDIQUI (Aga Khan University, Karachi, Pakistan)
- Csaba SZABÓ (University of Fribourg, Switzerland)
- Eric VICAUT (Université de Paris, UMRS 942 INSERM, France)
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