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Minimal immunoreactive plasma β-endorphin and decrease of cortisol at standard analgesia or different acupuncture techniques

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 April 2007

H. Harbach ,
B. Moll ,
R.-H. Boedeker ,
U. Vigelius-Rauch ,
H. Otto ,
J. Muehling ,
G. Hempelmann  and
P. Markart
H. Harbach
Affiliation:
University of Giessen, Department of Anaesthesiology, Intensive Care, Pain Therapy, Palliative Medicine, Germany
B. Moll
Affiliation:
Justus-Liebig-University, Rudolf-Buchheim-Institute for Pharmacology, Germany
R.-H. Boedeker
Affiliation:
Justus-Liebig-University, Institute of Medical Statistics and Informatics, Germany
U. Vigelius-Rauch
Affiliation:
University of Giessen, Department of Anaesthesiology, Intensive Care, Pain Therapy, Palliative Medicine, Germany
H. Otto
Affiliation:
University of Giessen, Department of Anaesthesiology, Intensive Care, Pain Therapy, Palliative Medicine, Germany
J. Muehling
Affiliation:
University of Giessen, Department of Anaesthesiology, Intensive Care, Pain Therapy, Palliative Medicine, Germany
G. Hempelmann
Affiliation:
University of Giessen, Department of Anaesthesiology, Intensive Care, Pain Therapy, Palliative Medicine, Germany
P. Markart
Affiliation:
University of Giessen, Department of Internal Medicine, Medical Clinic II, Giessen, Germany
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Summary

Background and objective

Acupuncture has been claimed to be associated with activation of the endogenous antinociceptive system. The analgesic effects of acupuncture have been ascribed to β-endorphin interacting with opioid receptors. However, firstly, the release of β-endorphin into the blood has been proven to be induced by stress, i.e. under dysphoric conditions, and, secondly, if released under stress, β-endorphin has been shown not to be analgesic. Our aim was to test whether β-endorphin immunoreactive material is released into the cardiovascular compartment during acupuncture comparing the most frequently used types of acupuncture with standard pain treatment under apparently low stress conditions.

Methods

This prospective study included 15 male patients suffering from chronic low back pain. β-Endorphin immunoreactive material and cortisol were measured in the plasma of patients who underwent, in randomorder, therapy according to a standard pain treatment, traditional Chinese acupuncture, sham acupuncture, electro acupuncture and electro acupuncture at non-acupuncture points before, at and after the treatment. Statistical analysis was performed using two-way ANOVA with repeated measures.

Results

A decrease in plasma cortisol concentration measured over the five treatment protocols was highly significant (P < 0.001). The β-endorphin immunoreactive material concentrations in plasma were minimal at all times and in all treatment conditions. The influence of treatments by various acupuncture procedures on cortisol and β-endorphin immunoreactive material plasma concentrations over the three time points was not significantly different.

Conclusions

β-endorphin immunoreactive material in blood is not released by any type of acupuncture as tested under low stress conditions.

Keywords

ACUPUNCTUREACUPUNCTURE ANALGESIALOW BACK PAINSTRESSβ-ENDORPHINCORTISOL
Type
Research Article
Information
European Journal of Anaesthesiology , Volume 24 , Issue 4 , April 2007 , pp. 370 - 376
Copyright
Copyright © European Society of Anaesthesiology 2006

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