Effects of Acupuncture Artery Technique at ST40 on Peripheral Microcirculation and Sympathetic Activity in Patients with Wagner Grade 0 Diabetic Foot: A Randomized, Single-Blind, Controlled Trial.
Linjin Zhou, Yishu Yan, Ying Li et al.
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In 30 seconds
This randomized, single-blind, controlled trial compared one session of acupuncture artery technique at ST40 with ordinary acupuncture in 60 patients with Wagner grade 0 diabetic foot. Peripheral perfusion was assessed using laser speckle imaging, alongside frequency-band changes and plantar temperature differences. The ST40 technique increased microcirculatory perfusion and endothelial, sympathetic, and cardiac frequency-band power during and immediately after needling; these effects returned to baseline by 30 minutes. It also reduced bilateral plantar temperature differences more than ordinary acupuncture. No significant adverse effects were observed.
Key findings
- Microcirculatory perfusion and endothelial, sympathetic, and cardiac frequency-band power increased during and immediately after the ST40 technique, returning to baseline by 30 minutes.
- The ST40 technique reduced bilateral plantar temperature differences significantly more than ordinary acupuncture.
- No significant adverse effects were observed.
Why it matters
Peripheral microcirculation and temperature asymmetry are relevant to early diabetic foot changes. This trial provides evidence that the tested acupuncture technique can produce short-lived changes in these measures compared with ordinary acupuncture. The findings may inform further evaluation of acupuncture as an intervention in early-stage diabetic foot, but do not establish durable benefit or prevention of clinical complications.
What to keep in mind
The study assessed immediate effects after a single session, with measured perfusion changes returning to baseline by 30 minutes; it does not establish longer-term clinical outcomes.