Chinese Medicine + Acupuncture Research|Asante Academy of Chinese Medicine

To determine if acupuncture can relieve neck pain.
To classify the degrees of pain that can be relieved by acupuncture.
To investigate the most effective acupuncture techniques for the relief of chronic neck pain.
To investigate the mechanism of action of acupuncture in the treatment of chronic neck pain.

Patients will be randomly selected into four groups; each group to be assessed before and after different methods of treatment for control of chronic neck pain:

Group 1. Patients will be managed by conventional spinal injections for pain relief.
Group 2. Patients whose pain management is by Western Medical Acupuncture. Local points of insertion of needles according to Medical Acupuncture Guidelines, using small needles and shallow insertions.
Group 3. Chinese Classical Acupuncture will be used for this group, using Traditional Chinese diagnostic and needling techniques.
Group 4. A combination of Chinese Classical Acupuncture and Chinese herbal medicine.

Patients for this study will be chosen from those with a history of the following conditions:

Spondylosis
Rheumatoid Arthritis
Structural disorders of the cervical spine
Injuries to the cervical spine

Dr. G. Panch, Consultant in Anaesthesia and Pain Management, Whittington Hospital Pain Clinic, will carry out initial assessment and diagnosis. Treatments will be carried out in the Day Surgery Unit at the Whittington Hospital.

Tenderness to the touch
Spinal pain associated with tender swellings
Facial numbness
Numbness of arms
‘Pins and Needles’ in hands

Dizziness
Tension headaches
Restlessness
Irritability
Mood swings
Panic attacks
Insomnia
G/I upsets
Other associated symptoms as described by individual patients

Observation and analysis will be completed by questionnaire at the beginning and end of treatment and 6 months after treatment.

Research group:

Dr. G. Panch and Whittington Hospital Pain Clinic Team;
D. Jiang, and X.L. Deng, Doctors of Acupuncture and Chinese Medicine at the Asanté Academy of Chinese Medicine (Affiliated Teaching and Research Centre of Chinese Medicine for Middlesex University)

Current conventional treatment tends to focus on the inhibition of skeletal bone breakdown, whereas no bone formation-promoting agent has been proven for clinical use. Traditionally, Chinese herbs have long been used to treat osteoporosis-related conditions and positive results well documented. This project intends to build on a firm base of clinical experience via a programme of clinical and laboratory-based research to determine the observed bone-strengthening properties of selected Chinese herbs. Research will be carried out with the collaboration of two partners, the Royal Veterinary College and the Pharmacognosy Research Laboratories of the Department of Pharmacy at King’s College London.

Chinese Acupuncture, correctly used, is a well-known method of pain relief. One area where this has been observed in practice is in the treatment and prevention of angina. Where angina is currently treated with acupuncture, the need for conventional drug treatment is often subsequently reduced.
The purpose of research into this form of treatment for patients with Angina is to investigate and quantify how Acupuncture can reduce or relieve pain during attacks, reduce the incidence of attacks and reduce prescription drug use. The Asanté Academy of Chinese Medicine in conjunction with the Central Middlesex Hospital plans a series of double blind, placebo-controlled, hospital based trials.

This project has two aims:

To determine if acupuncture can improve blood supply to coronary arteries.
To compare outcomes with conventional drug-based treatments for angina.

So far there has been little or no research into how Chinese herbal medicine and acupuncture has been able to enhance fertility in couples where other methods have had little success. Three main areas of research are planned:

An open trial to investigate the effects of Chinese medicine on sperm count, viability, motility and malformation.
Double blind clinical trials are planned to examine the effects of Chinese medicine on male and female reproductive hormone levels, where there is no specific cause of infertility.
Conventional fertility treatments, for instance, IVF, tend to be difficult and expensive. Chinese medicine can enhance success rates, and this will be formally investigated.

A programme of research into Chinese medicine and cancer is planned. The first project proposes to look at how Chinese medicine can:

Help to reduce the unpleasant side effects of chemotherapy.
Enhance white blood cell and antibody levels.

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Research & Articles Articles About Asanté Contact us Home					Asanté Academy Research Programmes The Management of Chronic Neck Pain by Acupuncture Effective Herbal Treatment for Osteoporosis Acupuncture to Prevent and Relieve Angina Chinese Medicine and Patients with IDDM and NIDDM Chinese Medicine in the Treatment of Cancer The Management of Chronic Neck Pain by Acupuncture 1. Aims and Objectives: To determine if acupuncture can relieve neck pain. To classify the degrees of pain that can be relieved by acupuncture. To investigate the most effective acupuncture techniques for the relief of chronic neck pain. To investigate the mechanism of action of acupuncture in the treatment of chronic neck pain. 2. Method Patients will be randomly selected into four groups; each group to be assessed before and after different methods of treatment for control of chronic neck pain: Group 1. Patients will be managed by conventional spinal injections for pain relief. Group 2. Patients whose pain management is by Western Medical Acupuncture. Local points of insertion of needles according to Medical Acupuncture Guidelines, using small needles and shallow insertions. Group 3. Chinese Classical Acupuncture will be used for this group, using Traditional Chinese diagnostic and needling techniques. Group 4. A combination of Chinese Classical Acupuncture and Chinese herbal medicine. 3. Observation The degree of pain. Clinical signs and location of pain. General condition of patients. 4. Design Patients for this study will be chosen from those with a history of the following conditions: Spondylosis Rheumatoid Arthritis Structural disorders of the cervical spine Injuries to the cervical spine Dr. G. Panch, Consultant in Anaesthesia and Pain Management, Whittington Hospital Pain Clinic, will carry out initial assessment and diagnosis. Treatments will be carried out in the Day Surgery Unit at the Whittington Hospital. Direct symptoms to be investigated: Tenderness to the touch Spinal pain associated with tender swellings Facial numbness Numbness of arms ‘Pins and Needles’ in hands Associated Symptoms to be investigated: Dizziness Tension headaches Restlessness Irritability Mood swings Panic attacks Insomnia G/I upsets Other associated symptoms as described by individual patients Each course of acupuncture treatment will be continued weekly for 10 weeks. Detailed case notes will be kept for each participant. Observation and analysis will be completed by questionnaire at the beginning and end of treatment and 6 months after treatment. Statistical assessment can then be completed. Research group: Dr. G. Panch and Whittington Hospital Pain Clinic Team; D. Jiang, and X.L. Deng, Doctors of Acupuncture and Chinese Medicine at the Asanté Academy of Chinese Medicine (Affiliated Teaching and Research Centre of Chinese Medicine for Middlesex University) back to top Effective Herbal Treatment for Osteoporosis Current conventional treatment tends to focus on the inhibition of skeletal bone breakdown, whereas no bone formation-promoting agent has been proven for clinical use. Traditionally, Chinese herbs have long been used to treat osteoporosis-related conditions and positive results well documented. This project intends to build on a firm base of clinical experience via a programme of clinical and laboratory-based research to determine the observed bone-strengthening properties of selected Chinese herbs. Research will be carried out with the collaboration of two partners, the Royal Veterinary College and the Pharmacognosy Research Laboratories of the Department of Pharmacy at King’s College London. back to top Acupuncture to Prevent and Relieve Angina Chinese Acupuncture, correctly used, is a well-known method of pain relief. One area where this has been observed in practice is in the treatment and prevention of angina. Where angina is currently treated with acupuncture, the need for conventional drug treatment is often subsequently reduced. The purpose of research into this form of treatment for patients with Angina is to investigate and quantify how Acupuncture can reduce or relieve pain during attacks, reduce the incidence of attacks and reduce prescription drug use. The Asanté Academy of Chinese Medicine in conjunction with the Central Middlesex Hospital plans a series of double blind, placebo-controlled, hospital based trials. This project has two aims: To determine if acupuncture can improve blood supply to coronary arteries. To compare outcomes with conventional drug-based treatments for angina. back to top Chinese Medicine and Patients with IDDM and NIDDM So far there has been little or no research into how Chinese herbal medicine and acupuncture has been able to enhance fertility in couples where other methods have had little success. Three main areas of research are planned: An open trial to investigate the effects of Chinese medicine on sperm count, viability, motility and malformation. Double blind clinical trials are planned to examine the effects of Chinese medicine on male and female reproductive hormone levels, where there is no specific cause of infertility. Conventional fertility treatments, for instance, IVF, tend to be difficult and expensive. Chinese medicine can enhance success rates, and this will be formally investigated. back to top Chinese Medicine in the treatment of Cancer A programme of research into Chinese medicine and cancer is planned. The first project proposes to look at how Chinese medicine can: Help to reduce the unpleasant side effects of chemotherapy. Enhance white blood cell and antibody levels. back to top