Clinical Observation on 22 Cases of Acute Rotator Cuff Injury Treated with Distal Acupoint Acupuncture Combined with Xiaozhong Zhitong Ointment

SUN Huabin; YU Qing; YUAN Ying

doi:10.3639/j.issn.2095-3097.2025.12.026

Abstract：Objective To observe the clinical efficacy of distal acupoint acupuncture combined with Xiaozhong Zhitong Ointment in treating acute rotator cuff injuries.Methods A total of 64 patients with acute rotator cuff injuries admitted to the Zibo Baohua Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine and Wangjing Hospital,China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences from March 2023 to December 2024 were selected as study subjects.They were assigned random numbers by a central randomization system and divided into experimental group 1(n=22),experimental group 2(n=22),and control group(n=20).Experimental group 1 received distal acupoint acupuncture.Experimental group 2 received the same treatment as experimental group 1 with the addition of topical application of Xiaozhong Zhitong Ointment.The control group received acupuncture at points recommended in the textbook"Acupuncture and Moxibustion".All groups were treated for 10 days.Clinical efficacy,Visual Analog Scale(VAS)score,American Shoulder and Elbow Surgeons(ASES)score,shoulder range of motion(ROM),and adverse events were compared among the three groups.Results During treatment,one patient dropped out from experimental group 2 and one from the control group.The total effective rate in experimental group 2(100.00%)was significantly higher than that in the control group(73.68%)and experimental group 1(72.73%)(P<0.05).After treatment,VAS scores decreased in all three groups(P<0.05),and ASES scores increased(P<0.05).The VAS score in experimental group 2 was significantly lower than that in experimental group 1 and the control group(P<0.05),while the ASES score and the differences in VAS and ASES scores were significantly higher in experimental group 2 than in the other two groups(P<0.05).After treatment,flexion,abduction,and external rotation angles increased in all three groups compared with those before treatment(P<0.05),and these angles in experimental group 2 were greater than those in experimental group 1 and the control group(P<0.05).There was no statistically significant difference in the incidence of adverse events among the three groups(P>0.05).Conclusion Distal acupoint acupuncture combined with topical application of Xiaozhong Zhitong Ointment is clinically effective in treating acute rotator cuff injuries,significantly alleviating pain and promoting the recovery of shoulder joint function.