Clinical Study On The Protective Effect Ofelectroacupuncture On Early Rheumatoid Arthritis

Objective: To investigate the clinical efficacy of electroacupuncture combined with disease-improving antirheumatic drugs(DMARDs)in the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis(RA)patients and its effect on serum metabolic biochemical markers and Interleukin-17(IL-17),and To explore the therapeutic effect and possible mechanism of electroacupuncture on rheumatoid arthritis.Methods: According to the principle of random control,60 patients with RA were divided into 3 groups: 20 patients in each group.The control group received drug treatment(MTX+LEF),the acupuncture group received ordinary acupuncture and drug treatment,and the electroacupuncture group received electroacupuncture and drug treatment.Treatment with electroacupuncture or ordinary acupuncture every other day,each course of treatment 10 times,a total of 2 courses,the treatment lasted for 8 weeks.Results: 1)After treatment,the duration of swelling and pain,joint count and morning stiffness in the three groups were significantly reduced,DAS28 and VAS scores,serum CRP and ESR levels were significantly reduced,and the improvement degree of various indicators in the electroacupuncture group(EA)was significantly better than that in the control group and the acupuncture group(P<0.05).2)After treatment,the levels of serum IL-17 decreased significantly(p<0.05),the levels of bone metabolic biochemical markers PICP,N-MID and B-ALP increased,and the levels of β-CTx and TRACP-5b decreased significantly(p<0.05).The absolute value and the difference value of bone metabolic biochemical index and IL-17 in EA group were more significant than those in other groups(p<0.05).Conclusion: Electroacupuncture(EA)can effectively relieve joint inflammation and improve bone metabolism in patients with RA.The mechanism may be related to the inhibition of IL-17,the regulation of PICP,N-MID,B-ALP,β-CTx and TRACP-5b.