Lupus Acupuncture Case Study

This lupus acupuncture case study from China demonstrates the beneficial effects of acupuncture. Treatments reduce pain, improve sleep, and enhance health-related quality of life in a patient with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). SLE, the most common type of lupus, is an autoimmune disease where the immune system attacks its own tissue, causing inflammation and organ damage. Lupus affects the joints, skin, brain, lungs, kidneys, and blood vessels.

Lupus Acupuncture Case Study

A 41-year-old woman diagnosed with SLE came for treatment in 2006, complaining of severe pain and swelling in multiple joints, insomnia, disturbed sleep, and poor quality of life for the previous seven years. She received daily acupuncture (20 minutes) and massage (20 minutes) for 30 days, with a seven-day pause following the first 15 days.

Following treatment, the patient reported a reduction of pain (Visual Analogue Scale) and reduced daytime fatigue (Epworth Sleepiness Scale). In addition, she reported improved sleep quality (Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index) and enhanced quality of life (Short Form Health Survey). These results showed that acupuncture and massage should be considered an integrative approach for the symptomatic management of SLE.

What is Systemic Lupus Erythematosus?

SLE is autoimmune in origin and characterized by auto-antibodies directed against nuclear antigens. Lupus occurs in approximately 1 in 1000 people, with a female-to-male ratio of 10:1. SLE patients typically use complementary and alternative medicine to reduce pain and manage symptoms, including acupuncture, massage, and diet. Acupuncture is safe and feasible for patients with SLE. Treatments can help reduce pain, swelling, stress, and anxiety, promote muscle relaxation and mobility, and improve sleep quality.

Lupus Case Presentation

The patient in this lupus acupuncture case study was a 41-year-old woman diagnosed with SLE who underwent conventional treatment in 2006. Her symptoms began with pain, swelling, and mild stiffness in multiple joints (toes, ankles, knees, wrists, elbows, and shoulders) and her low back. Initially, she was put on diclofenac by her physician, later to be discontinued on her own accord. The same year, lab findings identified anti-nuclear antibodies. She then took steroids for pain management.

She sought acupuncture in 2013. At the time she complained of severe pain and swelling in her toes, ankles, knees, fingers, wrists, elbows, and shoulders. In addition, she had low back pain. All of these symptoms had been ongoing for the past seven years. Furthermore, she had hypertension and nephrotic syndrome.

Lupus Acupuncture Treatment Protocol

She received TCM-style acupuncture (Traditional Chinese Medicine) for symptomatic relief of SLE. Practitioners used ten needles for each session, including the following bilateral acupoints: GV-20, GV-6, LI-11, HT-7, GB-34, and KI-3. She had 30 treatments with a seven-day rest following the 15th session. In addition, the patient received Swedish massage, which included touch, stroking, friction, kneading, and joint movements to the joints and lower back. Massage treatments lasted for 20 minutes each day. Furthermore, her practitioner advised her to eat more fruits and vegetables and to avoid meat and deep-fried foods.

Following her course of treatment, the patient’s pain levels significantly dropped, her sleep quality improved, and she felt an overall improvement in her quality of life.

Visual Analog Scale for Pain

Practitioners utilized the Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) to evaluate the patient’s pain intensity. On a scale of 0 to 10, 0 indicated no pain while 10 indicated worst pain. The patient marked on the scale to indicate her pain intensity before and after the intervention.

Epworth Sleepiness Scale

The Epworth Sleepiness Scale (ESS) measures daytime sleepiness by rating the chances of dozing off during the day in eight different situations. A rating of 0 to 3. 0 indicates no dozing, 1 indicates a slight chance of dozing, 2 indicates a moderate chance of dozing, and 3 indicates a high chance of dozing. A total score greater than 10 indicates excessive daytime sleepiness.

The Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index

Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) consists of seven components in a 9-item sleep questionnaire used to evaluate a subject’s sleep quality over the preceding month. A total score of 0-4 indicates good sleep quality, 5-10 indicates poor sleep quality, and greater than 10 indicates sleep disorder.

Short Form-36 Version 2 Health Survey

The health survey consists of a 36-item questionnaire measuring health in eight dimensions. For each measurement, item scores are noted, averaged, and transformed into a scale of 0-100, where 0 indicates the worst possible health and 100 indicates the best possible health.

Conclusion

These results demonstrate that acupuncture and massage positively reduce pain, improve sleep, and enhance life quality in patients with SLE.

Next Steps

At Raleigh Acupuncture, our success in helping lupus patients mirrors the beneficial results documented in this lupus acupuncture case study from China. Try acupuncture if you have been diagnosed with lupus. You may find it helps reduce pain, improve sleep, and enhance your overall quality of life.

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Reference

Mooventhan, A., & Nivethitha, L. (2014). Effects of acupuncture and massage on pain, quality of sleep and health related quality of life in patient with systemic lupus erythematosus. Journal of Ayurveda and integrative medicine, 5(3), 186–189. https://doi.org/10.4103/0975-9476.140484

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