Title: Acupuncture for Parkinson’s disease: From theory to practice

Abstract

Advances in molecular biology and biochemistry have improved the treatment of Parkinson’s disease (PD). There has been extensive evidence on the benefit of standard treatment (e.g., deep brain stimulation, levodopa, and dopamine agonists) and acupuncture for PD. Objectives:This presentation aims to distill the similarities and differences in the treatment concepts between Chinese and Western medicine from the perspective of reinforcing the deficiency and purging the excess, summarize the latest evidence on the benefits of acupuncture for PD from theory to practice, and propose prospective treatment options for PD. Scope: Application of alternative medicine in Parkinson's disease Conclusion: Although the methods of Western medicine treatment and acupuncture treatment differ, the main treatment ideas overlap. DA receptor agonists and supplements are consistent with the reinforcing effect of acupuncture, and relevant inhibitors are consistent with the purging effect of acupuncture. However, the theory of deficiency and excess is not completely equivalent to the pathological study of PD. The pathogenesis of PD is heterogeneous, involving many pathways and pathological products, and the crosstalk between them is not clear. Therefore, summarizing the pathogenesis of PD from deficiency and excess and the mechanism of acupuncture from reinforcing deficiency and purging excess will help to understand the heterogeneous pathogenesis and treatment principles of PD more vividly. It will also provide more ideas for the study of the mechanism of acupuncture in the treatment of PD. 1

Biography

Jingqi Fan is a doctoral student of Guangzhou University of traditional Chinese medicine. Main research direction is the pathogenesis of neurodegenerative diseases and the clinical efficacy of acupuncture.