CLINICAL OBSERVATION ON 96 CASES OF PRIMARY DYSMENORRHEA TREATED BY MEDICINE-SEPARATED MOXIBUSTION AND INVESTIGATION ON ITS MECHANISMS

摘要

Objective: To observe the therapeutic effect of medicine-separated moxibustion for primary dysmenorrhea and its influence on plasma hormone level. Methods: Ninety-six patients suffering from primary dysmenorrhea were randomly and evenly divided into treatment group treated with medicine-separated moxibustion of Shenque （神阙CV 8, 3-5 cones every time, beginning 1 week before onset of menstruation and stopping on the 3 rd day after onset, with 10 sessions being a therapeutic course, 3 courses all together）, and control group treated with oral administration of Yueyueshu （月月舒menstruation-smoothing granule, 10 g/time, b.i.d, 3 courses altogether）. Menses prostaglandin E2 （PGF 2α ） and plasma oxytocin （OT） during menstruation were determined by radioimmunoassay. Results: After the treatment, of the two 48 cases in treatment and control groups, 18 and 5 were cured, 24 and 9 had marked improvement in their symptoms, 6 and 26 had improvement, 0 and 8 failed in the treatment, with the total effective rates being 100.0% and 83.3% respectively, the therapeutic effect of treatment group was markedly superior to that of control group （P<0.05）. After the treatment, the contents of menses PGF 2α in treatment group and plasma OT in both groups were significantly lower than those of pre-treatment （P<0.01）. The therapeutic effect of moxibustion was significantly better than that of medication in lowering plasma OT. Conclusion: Medicine-separated moxibustion works well in treating primary dysmenorrhea, and moxibustion induced decrease of menses PGF 2α and plasma OT may contribute to its effect in relieving dysmenorrhea.