We appreciate the financial support from the Science and Technology Development Fund Project of Hospital of Chengdu University of Traditional Chinese Medicine (No. 20ZL10). The authors would like to thank Mr. Yang Yang for participating in our study as a model.

The clinical trial has been approved by the Approval Committee of the Respiratory Department of the Affiliated Hospital of Chengdu University of Traditional Chinese Medicine (No. KY2022022). In this study, the diagnostic criteria of bronchial asthma refer to the Guidelines for Bronchial Asthma Prevent and Management (2020 edition)8 and TCM operations refer to the Criteria of Diagnosis and Therapeutic Effect of Diseases and Syndromes in Traditional Chinese Medicine15. The ty...

The airway inflammation caused by bronchial asthma is a cascade immune response involving various immune cells, cytokines, and inflammatory mediators19. Bronchial biopsies of asthmatic patients show the presence of eosinophils, activated mast cells, and Th2 cell-based T cell infiltration20. Pulmonary function indexes FEV1 and PEF reflect the severity of airway obstruction, and are the most commonly used indexes for objectively judging and evaluating the condition of asthma<...

The protocol presented here demonstrates the operation of moxibustion in treating bronchial asthma in terms of patient management, material preparation, acupoint selection, operation, and postoperative nursing. The purpose of this protocol is to control the symptoms of patients with bronchial asthma and improve lung function by moxibustion.
Acupuncture and moxibustion are important components of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM). Concerning bronchial asthma, acupuncture and moxibustion have accumulated extensive clinical experience in treatments, and moxibustion in particular has shown unique advantages1,2,3,4. Modern studies show that the effects of the biological mechanism of warming promotion and supplementation of moxibustion are as follows: moxibustion activates the acupoints (local starting), promotes the movement of qi and blood, regulates the neuroendocrine-immune network (regulatory pathway), and regulates the functions of the viscera (response of the effector organ)5,6,7.
Bronchial asthma is a chronic inflammatory disease of the airway which can lead to symptoms such as recurrent wheezing, shortness of breath, chest tightness, or cough, due to the increased airway reactivity. These symptoms often occur or worsen at night or in the morning8. Bronchial asthma is one of the most common chronic lung diseases in the world, affecting people of all ages9. In recent years, the prevalence of bronchial asthma in China has been increasing yearly. The latest epidemiological survey showed that the prevalence of asthma in adults over 20 years old is 4.2%10. The disease will lead to airway remodeling and hyperreactivity, which will seriously affect the pulmonary function of patients in the late stage. Currently, the main clinical treatments for bronchial asthma are anti-inflammatory, antispasmodic, and symptomatic treatments. Nevertheless, the high recurrence rate and intractability outline the main disadvantages, let alone the poor long-term drug efficacy and lack of an ideal therapeutic schedule. Compared with inhaled drugs alone, moxibustion could enhance humoral and cellular immunity, which have a significant immunomodulatory effect during treatment11,12,13. By burning and roasting the Chinese medica above human acupoints, moxibustion is a type of treatment that works through drugs and heat stimulation. It has effects such as dispelling cold sensations by warming the meridians, promoting qi circulation to remove the meridian obstruction, and eliminating stagnation to activate meridians. It is regarded as a TCM characteristic therapy for bronchial asthma14.

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			<td>Forceps</td>
			<td>Shandong Weigao Group MEDICAL Polymer Co., Ltd.</td>
			<td>Shandong Medical Device Registration Certificate: No.20182640148</td>
			<td></td>
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			<td>Gauze</td>
			<td>Shandong Angyang Medical Co.,Ltd</td>
			<td>Shandong Medical Device Registration Certificate: No.20152140569</td>
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			<td>Ningbo Qiant Technology Co., Ltd</td>
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			<td>Moxa Stick</td>
			<td>Nanjing Tongrentang Lejialaopu Health Technology Co., Ltd</td>
			<td>10028859806337</td>
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			<td>Surgical Curved Plate</td>
			<td>Yuekang Hardware Medical Instrument Factory, Caitang Town, Chao&#39;an District, Chaozhou City</td>
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a traditional chinese medicine characteristic therapy for bronchial asthma: moxibustion

Bronchial asthma is a chronic inflammatory disease of the airway which can lead to symptoms such as recurrent wheezing, shortness of breath, chest tightness, or cough, as a result of increased airway reactivity. With high diurnal variation, these symptoms often occur or worsen at night or in the morning. By burning and roasting the Chinese medica above human acupoints, moxibustion is a type of treatment that stimulates the activity of the human meridians through drugs and heat stimulation to prevent and treat diseases. According to the principle of syndrome differentiation and treatment of traditional Chinese medicine, acupoints are selected on the corresponding parts, which has a definite effect. It is regarded as a characteristic traditional Chinese medicine therapy for bronchial asthma. This protocol elaborates the methods and steps of patient management, material preparation, selection of acupoints, operation, and postoperative nursing to ensure safe and effective moxibustion treatment to significantly improve the clinical symptoms and quality of life of patients with bronchial asthma.

Eight patients with bronchial asthma who met the criteria were treated with moxibustion. All patients had the same diagnostic criteria for bronchial asthma, and the patients&#39; pulmonary function FEV1 ratio, PEF ratio (actual/expected; percentage), and asthma control test (ACT) scores were measured before and after the moxibustion treatment in the same way. After one course of treatment, all patients had improved pulmonary function FEV1 ratio, PEF ratio, and ACT scores. Before treatment, the pulmonary function FEV1 rat...

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A Traditional Chinese Medicine Characteristic Therapy for Bronchial Asthma: Moxibustion

This protocol presents a curative procedure of moxibustion in treating patients with bronchial asthma.

Bronchial asthma is a chronic inflammatory disease of the airway which can lead to symptoms such as recurrent wheezing, shortness of breath, chest ...

Moxibustion is a traditional Chinese medicine therapy widely recognized as an effective treatment for bronchial asthma. It can enhance both humoral and cellular immunity, having a significant immunomodulator effect during treatment. Moxibustion has effects that include dispelling cold sensations by warming the meridians, promoting chi circulation to remove the meridian obstruction and eliminating stagnation to activate the meridians.It's also safe and convenient. The day before the operation, if possible, have the patient bathe in water having a comfortable temperature. Then, clean the skin of the operation site two to three times with clean water to remove surface contaminants.The radius of the cleaning area should be greater than 10 centimeters. On the day of the operation, using an iodophor cotton swab, disinfect the operation site skin from inside to outside two to three times, with the selected acupoint as the center. The area of the sterilized skin should not be less than five by five square centimeters.Before beginning the operation, ensure to wash hands with soapy water, following the specification of hand hygiene for healthcare workers. Depending on the position of the acupoints, place the patient in a supine or prone position for the procedure. Consider the width of the phalangeal joint of the patient's thumb as 1 F-cun to locate the acupoints.Locate Dingchuan, or EX-B1, at the nape on both sides, 0.5 F-cun from the midpoint of the lower edge of the seventh cervical vertebra spinous process. Locate Feishu, or BL13, on the back on both sides, 1.5 F-cun from the midpoint of the lower edge of the third thoracic vertebra spinous process. Locate Zhongfu, or LU1, on the chest parallel to the first rib gap on both sides 6 F-cun from the anterior median line.Next, light the moxa stick with a lighter while holding the middle and upper 1/3 of the stick. Then, holding the moxa stick at the same region, aim the lighted end above the acupoint two to three centimeters away from the skin. For mild moxibustion, maintain a constant two-to three-centimeter distance from the skin throughout the process.To perform sparrow-pecking moxibustion, continuously move the burning end of the stick up and down perpendicular to the skin above the acupoint resembling a bird pecking. For convoluted moxibustion, perform a repeated rotational movement resembling drawing a circle with a radius of 2.5 centimeters, centered at the acupoint. In all cases, the operation site should feel warm, with the local skin appearing flushed, but there should be no burning pain.Perform the moxibustion at each acupoint for 10 to 15 minutes, while measuring the skin temperature of the acupoint using a portable infrared thermometer. If the patient feels warm and comfortable, keep the distance of the moxa stick from the skin unchanged. If the patient experiences a burning sensation, increase the distance between the moxa stick and the skin.If the patient's local skin sensation is weakened, feel the temperature by placing the index and middle finger, respectively, on both sides of the acupoint. After the operation, put the ignited part of the moxa stick into a curved plate filled with water to extinguish the moxa fire. Use forceps to remove the large ashes from the operation area.Then, gently wipe the residual stains with gauze. Pay attention to keeping the procedure area warm. The patient should not take cold water within half an hour after the operation.One course of moxibustion treatment improved the pulmonary function indexes in eight patients with bronchial asthma. The ratio of actual to expected forced expiratory volume, or FEV1, and peak expiratory flow, or PEF, as well as the asthma control test, or ACT score, increased significantly after treatment. The computer tomography, or CT, of the chest of a 71-year-old female patient showed obvious lung inflation with thickened and disturbed lung texture.After moxibustion, her chest CT showed improved lung inflation and partial reduction in pulmonary texture disorder. The pulmonary function FEV1 ratio, PEF ratio, and ACT score of the patient also increased significantly after the treatment. This protocol demonstrates the efficiency of moxibustion in treating bronchial asthma.

A Traditional Chinese Medicine Characteristic Therapy for Bronchial Asthma: Moxibustion

Abstract