Randomized Controlled Study on Opposing Needling at "'Tiaokou'(ST 33) " for Treatment of Scapulahumeral Periarthritis

Objective: To explore whether the therapeutic effect on scapulohumeral periarthritis by opposing needling at point 'Tiaokou'(ST 33) is better than that by routine acupuncture treatment. Methods:The152 patients with periarthritis of shoulder were randomly assigned to treatment and control groups, 76 in each group. 'Tiaokou'(ST 33) on the uninjured side was needled, and the affected side of shoulder joint was moved for 30 minutes in treatment group, 3 times a week, for 4 weeks. 'Jianyu'(LI15), 'Jianliao'(SJ14), 'Jianzhen'(SI09), 'Jianqian'(EX-UE) and Ashi points on the affected side were needled in control group for routine acupuncture, 3 times a week, for 4 weeks. The VAS ache scores of shoulder and the CMS ache scores were compared after the treatment. Results: by one day after treatment, the end of the treatment and one month after treatment,the treatment group showed lower VAS ache scores than control group(P0.05), as well as higher CMS ache scores than control group(P0.01). Conclusion: Opposing needling at 'Tiaokou'(ST 33) can provide better therapeutic effect than the routine acupuncture treatment on periarthritis of shoulder.