Combining fire needle plus cupping with famciclovir and gabapentin in the treatment of acute herpes zoster: a revised intervention approach

作者：Ying Zhang, Ming Jing, Lan Wang, Zuohui Liang, Qiannan Xu, Qifu Li, Shihua Li · 发表于：Archives of Dermatological Research · 年份：2024 · DOI：10.1007/s00403-024-03628-3 · 被引用次数：5 · 研究领域：Herpesvirus Infections and Treatments、Dermatology and Skin Diseases、Healthcare and Venom Research

This study aimed to investigate the efficacy and safety of fire needle plus cupping (FC) combined with oral famciclovir and gabapentin for the treatment of acute-phase herpes zoster (AHZ). This study was conducted as a superiority, randomized controlled trial in which 84 patients with AHZ who met the diagnostic criteria were selected and randomly assigned to three groups on a 1:1 basis. Group A: received oral famciclovir with gabapentin treatment (FG); Group B: received fire needle plus cupping (FC) with FG. The primary outcome was the difference in patients' pain levels as assessed by the VAS scale. Secondary outcomes were changes in sign-symptom scores, incidence of adverse effects, and incidence of PHN. After one week of treatment, both groups showed decreased VAS scores and symptom-sign scores compared to baseline. However, the decrease in VAS scores was significantly higher in Group B compared to Group A (p < 0.0001). Similarly, the improvement in symptom-sign scores was significantly better in Group B (p < 0.0001). Group A experienced a higher rate of adverse reactions (21.95%) compared to Group B (4.76%), with a significant difference between the groups (p = 0.021). Furthermore, the incidence of PHN was significantly lower in Group B (4.76%) compared to Group A (29.27%) (p = 0.003). Fire needle therapy combined with medication demonstrated superior analgesic effects, improved symptom relief, and reduced adverse reactions and the incidence of PHN compared to medication ...