Acupuncture For Stroke

By Y.C. Chan, OMD, Dipl Ac

Stroke is one of the most deadly disorders in the U.S. Current medical treatments for stroke are limited and do not always achieve optimal results.

The most common risk factors for stroke are high cholesterol, high blood press, high blood sugar, heart disease or a previous stroke.

The symptoms of stroke vary widely in type and severity, but some signature problems include difficulty speaking, walking, hearing, numbness and paralysis on one side of the body, and mental confusion. However, during clinical observation, less than 10% of patients have pain, but most stroke patients have a combination of diseases. In that case they might suffer pain in addition to the stroke symptoms.

Stroke rehabilitation for many patients is a long-term process. Treatments such as physical therapy, occupational therapy, and speech therapy are widely acceptable forms for stroke patients. Unfortunately, acupuncture is excluded from most rehab programs in the U.S. Many patients who have tried acupuncture after stroke have had a reasonable outcome, however most insurance companies do not cover the long-term process of acupuncture.

A study carried out at the Lund University Hospital, Sweden involved 78 patients with severe hemiparesis (paralysis of one side of the body) within 10 days of stroke onset. 40 patients received daily physiotherapy and occupational therapy, and 38 patients received acupuncture treatment twice a week for 10 weeks. Patients treated with acupuncture recovered faster and to a larger extent than the controls with significant differences in measures of balance, mobility, quality of life index, and fewer days spent at hospitals/nursing homes.

There are hundreds of stroke studies from China and Japan, some of which involve large groups of patients, that show acupuncture efficacy in treating stroke. According to conventional medicine there is no medication to cure stroke. Acupuncture is a unique approach for stroke patients. However, better designed and larger-scale studies in the future are necessary.