Randomized Controlled Trial
Copyright ©The Author(s) 2022. Published by Baishideng Publishing Group Inc. All rights reserved.
World J Clin Cases. Dec 6, 2022; 10(34): 12587-12593
Published online Dec 6, 2022. doi: 10.12998/wjcc.v10.i34.12587
Clinical study on tri-tongue acupuncture combined with low-frequency electrical stimulation for treating post-stroke dysarthria
Bin Man, Wei-Wei Li, Jun-Feng Xu, Qian Wang
Bin Man, Wei-Wei Li, Jun-Feng Xu, Qian Wang, Department of Acupuncture and Moxibustion, The First Teaching Hospital of Tianjin University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, National Clinical Research Center for Chinese Medicine Acupuncture and Moxibustion, Tianjin 300381, China
Author contributions: Man B proposed the research topics, designed the research protocols, and wrote the manuscript; Li WW participated in experimental data analysis; Xu JF revised key theories and other major elements of the manuscript; and Wang Q participated in the data collection; all authors reviewed and approved the final version to be published.
Institutional review board statement: The study was reviewed and approved by the First Teaching Hospital of Tianjin University of Traditional Chinese Medicine Institutional Review Board.
Clinical trial registration statement: Although our study is not registered at clinical trial registry, we ensure the rights and interests of subjects according to the provisions of the relevant ethics committee.
Informed consent statement: All study participants or their legal guardians provided written informed consent prior to study enrollment.
Conflict-of-interest statement: All authors declare no potential conflicts of interest related to this study.
Data sharing statement: No additional data are available.
CONSORT 2010 statement: The authors have read the CONSORT 2010 statement, and the manuscript was prepared and revised according to the CONSORT 2010 statement.
Open-Access: This article is an open-access article that was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution NonCommercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: https://creativecommons.org/Licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Corresponding author: Bin Man, MBChB, Attending Doctor, Department of Acupuncture and Moxibustion, The First Teaching Hospital of Tianjin University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, National Clinical Research Center for Chinese Medicine Acupuncture and Moxibustion, No. 88 Changling Road, Xiqing District, Tianjin 300381, China. binmanbin@163.com
Received: September 6, 2022
Peer-review started: September 6, 2022
First decision: October 11, 2022
Revised: October 26, 2022
Accepted: October 31, 2022
Article in press: October 31, 2022
Published online: December 6, 2022
ARTICLE HIGHLIGHTS
Research background

Related studies have shown that acupuncture therapy, electrical stimulation of articulatory muscles, and speech training can improve the fluency and intelligibility of articulation in patients with post-stroke dysarthria. There is a relative lack of research on tri-tongue acupuncture with low-frequency electrical stimulation for the treatment of post-stroke dysarthria. We aim to improve speech function and clinical efficacy in patients with post-stroke dysarthria.

Research motivation

Whether low-frequency current stimulation combined with trigeminal acupuncture can improve the treatment effect of dysarthria in post-stroke patients remains unclear.

Research objectives

To investigate the clinical effects of tri-tongue acupuncture combined with low-frequency electrical stimulation in the treatment of dysarthria after stroke.

Research methods

We conducted a randomized clinical trial. The control group was treated with triple tongue acupuncture and the treatment group was treated with both tri-tongue acupuncture and low-frequency electrical stimulation.

Research results

The overall efficacy in the treatment group was better than that in the control group (P < 0.05). After therapy, the Western Aphasia Battery (WAB) scores, Frenchay Dysarthria Assessment, and General Quality of Life Inventory (GQOLI-74) scores in the two groups significantly increased (P < 0.05), and the treatment group increased more significantly than that in the controls (P < 0.05).

Research conclusions

Low-frequency electrical stimulation combined with tri-tongue acupuncture intervention can effectively ameliorate the symptoms of dysarthria in post-stroke patients and improve their quality of life and clinical efficacy.

Research perspectives

Future studies should expand the sample size, standardize the selection of acupuncture points and manipulation techniques, and unify the criteria for evaluating the treatment efficacy.