Objective: To analyze changes in cardiac function indices after electroacupuncture (EA) at the pericardium 6 (PC-6) acupoint using the equilibrium radionuclide angiocardiography (ERNA) quantity analysis technique.
Design: Analysis of clinical outcomes after EA at PC-6 measured by ERNA.
Setting: The study was conducted in a hospital.
Participants: 31 participants (17 patients with angina and 14 healthy volunteers).
Intervention: The study used ERNA to study outcomes of EA at PC-6 on heart function.
Outcome measure: ERNA images were taken before the treatment (T0), at the end of the treatment (T1), and 20 minutes after the treatment (T2) and then processed.
Results: Regional left ventricular ejection fraction (REF) increased after EA in the angina and control groups. REF at T2 was significantly higher than at T1 in the angina group (p<.01). In the control group, REF was higher at T1 than at T0 (p<.01) but did not differ between T1 and T2 (p=.08). The REF deviation among ventricular regions in the angina group was significantly greater than that in the control group at T0 (p<.01) but was reduced to the level of that in control group after EA (p=.52). Peak filling rate was lower in the angina group than in controls at all three time points (all p<.01). After EA, peak filling rate increased markedly in the angina group but not in the control group. The cardiac cycle was shorter in the angina group than in the control group at T0 (p<.01) and increased after EA. The cardiac cycle of the control group did not change.
Conclusion: Effects of EA at PC-6 on heart function can be detected and quantified by ENRA.