[Effect of electroacupuncture at Neiguan (PC 6) on pulmonary function during one-lung ventilation in patients with...

To observe the protective effect of electroacupuncture (EA) at Neiguan (PC 6) on pulmonary function during one-lung ventilation (OLV) in patients with lobectomy, and explore its action mechanism.

Sixty patients with lobectomy were randomly divided into an observation group and a control group, 30 cases in each one. The patients in the control group were treated with general anesthesia, and OLV was given when surgery began; when the surgery finished, air was removed from the thoracic cavity and two-lung ventilation was performed. On the basis of the treatment in the control group, the patients in the observation group were treated with EA (disperse-dense wave, 2 Hz/100 Hz of frequency) at Neiguan (PC 6) 30 min before anesthesia induction until the end of the surgery. The pulmonary function indexes [arterial partial pressure of oxygen (PaO₂), oxygenation index (OI), compliance of lung (CL), respiratory index (RI)] and serum levels of superoxide dismutase (SOD), malondialdehyde (MDA), interleukin 6 (IL-6) and tumor necrosis factor α (TNF-α) were observed before surgery (T₀), 30 min into OLV (T₁), 60 min into OLV (T₂) and after operation (T₃). The total incidence of complications, pressing times of postoperative patient-controlled analgesia pump in 48 h after surgery and hospital stay were compared between the two groups.

Compared with T₀, the PaO₂, OI, CL and serum SOD at T₁, T₂ and T₃ in the two groups were decreased (P<0.05), and those in the observation group were higher than those in the control group (P<0.05). The RI and serum levels of MDA, IL-6, TNF-α at T₁, T₂ and T₃ in the two groups were increased, and those in the observation group were lower than those in the control group (P<0.05). The total incidence of complications in the observation group was lower than that in the control group [3.3% (1/30) vs 23.3% (7/30), P<0.05]. The pressing times of postoperative patient-controlled analgesia pump in 48 h after surgery and hospital stay in the observation group were less than those in the control group (P<0.05).

EA at Neiguan (PC 6) has protective effects on lung injury induced by OLV after lobectomy, and its mechanism may be related to the improvement of oxidative stress and inflammatory response.