Abstract:

Objective To investigate the clinical efficacy of fire acupuncture in treating patients with knee osteoarthritis and its effects on osteoarthritis index （WOMAC） scale scores， visual analog （VAS） scores， tumor necrosis factor-α （TNF-α） and interleukin-1β （IL-1β）. Methods A total of 90 patients with knee osteoarthritis who visited the outpatient department of acupuncture and moxibustion of the First Affiliated Hospital of Guangzhou University of Chinese Medicine and Chongqing Traditional Chinese Medicine Hospital from July 2021 to February 2022 were selected as the research objects， and were divided into 45 cases in the observation group and 45 cases in the control group， according to the randomized number table method， and were treated three times a week （once every other day） for a 4-week treatment period. The WOMAC score， VAS score， serum IL-1β and TNF-α levels of the two groups were compared. Results The cure rate of the treatment group was 88.89%， which was better than that of the control group （66.67%） （P < 0.05）. The cure rate of the treatment group was 88.89%， which was better than that of the control group （66.67%） （P < 0.05）. On the other hand， that were significant differences in serum IL-1β， serum TNF-α， WOMAC score， VAS score， effective rate， between the two groups before and after treatment （P < 0.05）， and the effect of fire acupuncture observation group was better than that of ordinary acupuncture control group （P < 0.05）. No adverse safety events occurred in all patients during treatment. There were significant statistical differences in WOMAC score， VAS score， effective rate， IL-1β and TNF-α between the two groups before and after treatment （P < 0.01）， and the effect of observation group was better than that of control group （P < 0.05）. No adverse safety events occurred in all patients during treatment. Conclusion Fire acupuncture treatment for knee osteoarthritis can significant relieve pain， improve joint mobility and is safe and reliable， and its mechanism may be related to the dowm-regulated of serum IL-1β and TNF-α levels.

Key words: knee osteoarthritis, fire acupuncture, VAS, interleukin-1β, tumor necrosis factor-α