Transcutaneous Electrical Acupoint Stimulation Potentiates Analgesic Effect of Morphine
- 1 August 2002
- journal article
- clinical trial
- Published by Wiley in The Journal of Clinical Pharmacology
- Vol. 42 (8), 899-903
- https://doi.org/10.1177/009127002401102812
Abstract
Pain is the major complaint of patients who choose acupuncture treatment. Transcutaneous electrical acupoint stimulation (TEAS) provides a safe, standardized technique without needle insertion. TEAS can be tested with the cold-pressor test, a simple, reliable, and widely used model in humansfor the induction of tonic pain. In this controlled study, the effects of TEAS on cold-pressor-induced pain were evaluated in 20 healthy human subjects. Electrical stimulation electrodes were applied to He-Gu (LI 4) and Nui-Guan (P 6) acupoints. The effects of saline plus no TEAS, 15-minute TEAS alone, 0.05 mg/kg morphine alone, and 15-minute TEAS plus morphine were assessed. Pain score ratings were evaluated at four time points from 30 to 170 seconds during the cold-pressor test. The authors observed analgesic effects in both TEAS-alone and morphine-alone sessions, and pain score rating reductions were statistically significant compared to unstimulated control (both p < 0.01). The degree of TEAS analgesia combined with 0.05 mg/kg morphine was significantly higher than TEAS alone (p < 0.01). The results support the efficacy of TEAS analgesia and suggest that combination of TEAS with low-dose morphine can achieve better pain control in a variety of clinical settings.Keywords
This publication has 24 references indexed in Scilit:
- Acupuncture: An Evidence-Based Review of the Clinical LiteratureAnnual Review of Medicine, 2000
- The mechanism of acupuncture analgesia: a reviewComplementary Therapies in Medicine, 1997
- A Fresh Approach to Traditional AcupunctureAcupuncture in Medicine, 1997
- Use of alternative therapies: Estimates from the 1994 Robert Wood Johnson Foundation National Access to Care SurveyJournal of Pain and Symptom Management, 1997
- Scientific Research into Acupuncture for the Relief of PainThe Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine, 1996
- Pharmacological Mechanisms of Opioid AnalgesicsClinical Neuropharmacology, 1993
- The role of endogenous peptides in the action of opioid analgesicsAnnals of Emergency Medicine, 1986
- Tolerance to electroacupuncture and its cross tolerance to morphineNeuropharmacology, 1981
- The Cold Pressor Test and Autonomic Function: A Review and IntegrationPsychophysiology, 1975
- Analgesic effects of acupuncture on the pain of ice water: A double-blind study.Canadian Journal of Psychology / Revue canadienne de psychologie, 1974