A Study On The Changes Of Infrared Temperature At The Acupoints Of AIDS Patients In Men Who Have Sex With Me

Purpose:The purpose of this study is to study the infrared temperature changing pattern of Front-Mu points on MSM patients diagnosed with AIDS,to analyze the correlation between the relative infrared temperature of Front-Mu points and the serum viral load and CD4+ T lymphocyte count,to discuss the feasibility of reflecting AIDS related disease effects by measuring the change of infrared temperature on Front-Mu points,and to provide new biomedical evidence on proving the specificity of Front-Mu points and scientific meaning of applying the theory on specific acupoints into clinical setting.Study Subject and Method:The disease group includes a total of 48 MSM patients diagnosed with AIDS,who were registered with NGO.The clinical information including the serum HIV viral load and CD4 count was collected on those patients.Inclusion criteria of disease group: MSM with the history of anal sex;age between 18 to 60 years old;meeting the diagnostic criteria for AIDS by the Guideline for Diagnosis and Treatment of AIDS in China(2018 Edition);no medical history of internal diseases;no skin infection;and cognition intact,showing the willingness of participating in the study by signing the informed consent.Inclusion criteria of healthy control group: male without history of HIV infection;age between 18 to 60 years old;no medical history of internal diseases;no skin infection;and cognition intact,showing the willingness of participating in the study by signing the informed consent.infrared thermal imaging technology was used to collect the infrared images on forty-eight MSM diagnosed with AIDS(disease group)and on twenty-five healthy volunteers(control group).The infrared temperature of Front-Mu points(six single Front-Mu points,six bilateral Front-Mu points,a total of 18 acupoint)and Yu Tang acupoint was measured.Then,the relative infrared temperature was calculated(Temperature of Front-Mu points /Temperature of Yu Tang).The specificity of Front-Mu points observed in MSM patients with AIDS was discussed by comparing the infrared temperature mean value and the relative infrared temperature of paired Front-Mu points between two study groups.The specificity of Front-Mu points in reflecting the signs and symptoms of diseases as well as applying thetheory of specific acupoints in clinical practice was demonstrated by using Spearman correlation analysis method to study the correlation between the relative infrared temperature of Front-Mu points and HIV viral load and CD4+ cell count.All the data was analyzed by using SPSS 17.0 statistical software.Results:1.The infrared temperature of all twelve Front-Mu points of the study subjects in disease group was higher than the control group.2.Comparing the relative infrared temperature of two study groups,the finding is as the following:(1)the relative infrared temperature of Guan Yuan and Zhong Ji was significantly higher in disease group,P ? 0.05;(2)the relative infrared temperature of other Front-Mu points was no statistical difference between the two study groups,P ? 0.05.3.The analysis of correlation between the relative infrared temperature of all Front-Mu points and HIV viral load and CD4 cell count showing:(1)the relative infrared temperature of Ju Que,Zhong Wan,left Tian Shu,left Qi Men was positively correlated with serum viral load and the correlation was significant,P ? 0.05;their correlation coefficient ? ? 0.4,meaning the correlation was weak;(2)The correlation coefficient was between ±0.3 in other Front-Mu points.The correlation between the relative infrared temperature of those Front-Mu points and HIV viral load was not significant and no statistical difference was observed,P ? 0.05.4.The correlation between the relative infrared temperature of all Front-Mu points and blood CD4 cell count was not significant.the correlation coefficient was between ±0.3.There is no statistical difference P ? 0.05.Conclusion:1.The specific infrared temperature effect of Guan Yuan and Zhong Ji in the MSM patients with AIDS was consistent with the mechanism of infrared thermal imaging diagnosis.It reflected the clinical characteristics of AIDS in MSM patients,which is the damages are mostly done to the Zang-Fu and meridians in Middle and Lower Jiao by HIV.It demonstrates the scientific nature of specific acupoint theory and Zang Fu – Meridian theory of Traditional Chinese Medicine.2.There were weak or none correlations between the relative infrared temperature of Front-Mu points which are related to different Zang-Fu and serum viral load and blood CD4 cell count.The difference reflected HIV viral diversity and variability.It was consistent with the immunological Mechanism and clinical features of AIDS.It shows the necessity of developing individualized treatment plan based on the Traditional Chinese Medicine integration concept of“holistic nature of the body”in order to effectively treat HIV infection.