Objective

2

To evaluate the clinical efficacy of ultrasound-guided acupuncture at myofascial trigger points (MTrPs) on treating post-stroke foot drop.

Methods

2

Sixty patients with post-stroke foot drop were randomly assigned to an observation group 1 (20 cases

1 case dropped out)

an observation group 2 (20 cases

2 casses dropped out)

and a control group (20 cases). The control group received conventional acupuncture at Yanglingquan (GB34)

Jiexi (ST41)

Taichong (LR3)

Zusanli (ST36)

Xuanzhong (GB39)

and Qiuxu (GB40) on the affected side

once daily. In addition to the treatment of the control group

the observation group 1 received acupuncture at the tibialis anterior and gastrocnemius MTrPs

once every other day

while the observation group 2 received ultrasound-guided acupuncture at the tibialis anterior and gastrocnemius MTrPs

once every other day. All groups were treated for two weeks. Three-dimensional gait analysis was performed using an infrared motion capture system

and the Holden walking scale was used to evaluate walking ability before and after treatment in the three groups.

Results

2

Compared before treatment

the patients in the observation groups 1 and 2 showed increased walking speed (

P

<

0.05

P

<

0.01)

and improved Holden walking scale grades (

P

<

0.05

P

<

0.01) after treatment; the patients in the observation group 2 also showed increased ankle dorsiflexion angles (

P

<

0.05). The walking speeds of the observation groups 1 and 2 were faster than those of the control group after treatment (

P

<

0.05)

the Holden walking scale grade in the observation group 2 was superior to that in the control group (

P

<

0.05).

Conclusion

2

The ultrasound-guided acupuncture at MTrPs could effectively improve gait function in post-stroke foot drop patients.