Electric acupuncture treatment of peripheral nerve injury

54 cases of peripheral nerve injury were treated by electric acupuncture and compared with 54 control cases treated with supportive medication. The changes after treatment were observed chiefly by electromyography while sensory and motor improvement were also recorded as auxiliary indicators. The therapeutic results in the acupuncture group were 5 cases cured, 26 markedly effective, 19 improved, and 4 cases failed, a total effective rate of 92.6% in contrast to the 55.6% for the controls. Analysis of the therapeutic results showed that 1) those in the acupuncture group were significantly better than in the control group; 2) nerve injuries should be treated as early as possible; 3) the radial nerve and the common peroneal nerve recovered faster than others; 4) cases not surgically explored recovered faster than those that were, and 5) patients with prompt propagation of the needling sensation recovered significantly faster than those with slow propagation.