Acupuncture in the Management of Injury and Operative Pain Under Field Conditions

This document reports initial development of two experimental programs to permit quantitative assessment of the feasibility of Acupuncture Analgesia for integration into the present pain control armamentarium under clinical and especially field conditions. One experimental program involves acute Neurophysiological experiments in the cat to permit quantitative characterization of optimal Acupuncture waveform (electrical) or manipulation (manual) and optimal Acupuncture points. These experiments involve the study of the influence of Acupuncture stimulation on single neuron responses in three thalamic nuclear groups (associated with pain pathways) elicited by tooth pulp stimulation. At present, techniques and facility development are complete, pulp-elicited thalamic unitary responses are continuing to be catalogued, and a definitive Acupuncture protocol has been initiated in the Posterior Nuclear group, the first of the three thalamic nuclear groups of interest in which this protocol is being executed. The results show that stimulation of the Hoku Acupuncture point significantly attenuates thalamic unit activity elicited by pulp stimulation. The second experimental program involves chronic Behavioral experiments in the cat to permit a direct verification of the feasibility of Acupuncture analgesia in an animal preparation to avoid interpretive complications of placebo reactions, hypnotism, etc. Originator supplied keywords include: Acupuncture Analgesia, Orofacial Acupuncture, Regional Analgesia, Pain Control, Tooth Pulp.