Observation Of The Clinical Effects Of Guasha Therapy For Treating Lumbar Disc Herniation

Objective:To find out an effective and simple therapeutic method for treating lumbar disc herniation (LDH) and provide evidences for further standardized research by observing the clinical effects and safety of Guasha therapy for treating LDH.Methods:This research was based on a clinical trial conducted by randomized controlled trial with treatment group (30cases) and control group (30cases). During the trial,2cases in treatment group withdrew automatically and1case receiving operartion withdrew in control group, and57cases completed the treatment totally. The treatment group were given Guasha therapy. One side of the Guasha board was used to scrap such meridians from the top to the bottom in sequence as governor meridian, bladder meridian of foot Taiyang, gallbladder meridian of foot Shaoyang below the waist. Meanwhile, some key acupoints on the meridians were pressed by the apex angle of the Guasha board. Then Jiaji points and Ashi points were scrapped. Five days for one treatment and6times for the total treatments. The control group were given massage therapy, stopped for2days after every consecutive5days’ treatment and4weeks for the total treatment. The indexes were observed before the treatment, during the treatment day,15days and28days after the treatment. The indexes included low back pain JO A score sheet, VAS, ASLR and the improvement rate of both groups were assessed based on JOA score.Results:In Guasha treatment group,10cases were cured,13cases obviously effective,3cases effective,2cases ineffective, and the total effective rate was92.86%; in massage control group,12cases cured,10cases obviously effective,4cases effective,3cases ineffective and the total effective rate was89.66%. The difference of effects between the two groups had no statistical significance (P>0.05) and the effects of two groups were similar. Obvious difference of the VAS score and ASLR appeared within the group (P<0.05), which indicated that both Guasha therapy and massage treatment had the effects of instant analgesia and improving the angle of straight leg raising. When compared between the two groups, it was discovered that Guasha therapy performed better than massage treatment for instant analgesia and improving the angle of straight leg raising (P<0.05) Conclusion:Guasha therapy has remarkable clinical effects for treating LDH and it’s easy, convenient, safe, cheap and free from side-effects. Specifically, it has significant effect of instant analgesia and can greatly improve the patients’ comfort level, which is valuable to be widely spread in clinics and communities.