LOW-FREQUENCY ELECTRIC ACUPUNCTURE TREATMENT

Abstract

An adaptation of acupuncture anaesthesia developed at our clinic has been the method of conducting lowfrequency direct electric current through the acupuncture needle as the electrode. A detailed examination of three representative cases indicates that LFEA has a marked analgesic effect in cases of acute pain where conventional acupuncture and usual electric acupuncture have little or no effect. The method of administering LFEA is also explained, and it is concluded that LFEA must be considered a valuable, uncomplicated therapeutic modality, whether used alone or in combination with others.
In our pain clinic, acupuncture has been intensively utilized during the past ten years. In addition to classical acupuncture, a method of conducting direct electric current through the needle has also been routinely applied.
Recently, a new method of acupu ncture was evaluated and established by us: that is, the utilization of lowfrequency electrical current through the needles placed at therapeutic points. This method can be defined as the adaptation of acupuncture anesthesia for treatment, and technically it is referred to as “low-frequency electrical acupuncture (LFEA)” treatment. Through a large number of our cases, this LFEA has proved to have demonstrable effect upon diseases which have been difficult to treat by conventional acupuncture therapy.