Clinical Research of Acupuncture on the Dorsal Segment of Governor Vessel for Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease with Sleep Disorders

OBJECTIVE To study the changes rules of pressure pain when needling governor vessel on the back (below the spinous process from the T3 to the T12 thoracic vertebra) for patients with gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) accompanied by sleep disorders， and to objectively evaluate the curative effect of acupuncture. METHODS 60 cases of GERD patients were divided into the acupuncture group (28 cases) and the western medicine group (30 cases) by random number table， and 2 cases were drawing out from the acupuncture group. So， there were 30 cases in the western medicine group and 28 cases in the acupuncture group. Patients in the acupuncture group were needled below the spinous process from the T3 to the T12 thoracic vertebra， once every other day， three times a week. Patients in the western medicine group were treated by orally taking Omeprazole (20mg)， twice a day. Patients in both groups were treated for 8 weeks. Before and after treatment， reflux disease questionnaires (RDQ)， Pittsburgh sleep quality index (PSQI)， pain threshold value and tenderness along governor vessel from T3-T12 were detected before and after the treatment. RESULTS The sleep disorders of 58 cases have specific characteristics. After the treatment， RDQ and PSQI scores were significantly improved in two groups (P<0.01)， and the acupuncture group were significantly decreased than the western medicine group (P<0.01). The tenderness of T4， T5， T6， T7， T8， T11 were decreased than those of the pre-treatment (P<0.05，P<0.01). And the pain threshold values in T4， T5， T6， T7， T8， T11 of the acupuncture group were significantly increased than those of the western medicine group (P<0.05，P<0.01). CONCLUSION As the sleep disorders associated with gestroesophageal reflex disease has its own specific characteristics， the effect of acupuncture on the dorsal segment of the governor vessel from T3-T12 for the treatment of sleep disorders associated with GERD is better than that of the western medicine group， and pain threshold is increased after acupuncture comparing with the western medicine group.