Presented at the 2012 AAPM Annual Meeting « Back

Korean Medicine Inpatient Treatments Are as Effective in Improving the Symptoms of Lumbar Spinal Stenosis in the Short Term as Surgical Treatments

Wenchun Qu, MD PhD, qu.wenchun@mayo.edu¹, Timothy P. Maus, MD¹, Naveen S. Murthy, MD¹, (1) Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minnesota

Introduction: For lumbar spinal stenosis (Lss), surgical treatments are known to be more beneficial than conservative treatments, especially in the short term. But the complication rates for surgery range from 14% to 35% or more. Nonsurgical conservative treatments, like Korean medicine inpatient treatments for Lss, have been getting popular among South Koreans. But its effectiveness has not been investigated. The purpose of this study is to verify for the first time that Korean medicine inpatient treatments is as effective as surgical treatments for Lss in the short term. Methods: This retrospective study was involved 25 patients admitted to the Mokhuri Neck & Back Hospital from 9/2010 through 8/2011. Patients were treated with combined and integrative therapies comprised of Chuna (a Korean-style systemic manual therapy), acupuncture, and herbal medicines. Outcome measurements included VAS of LBP & leg pain, walking time (min) at admission, and discharge. Results: The mean of the admission period is 23.53±3.96 days. The mean pain scores of VAS of LBP & leg pain significantly decreased during admission period, -6.07±1.83cm (P <0.0001, Wilcoxon signed rank test). The mean walking times (at initial 3.00±3.21min) significantly increased from admission to discharge 11.00±7.04 min (P = 0.0001, Wilcoxon signed rank test). Conclusion: Nonsurgical conservative treatments like Korean medicine inpatient treatments are effective in improving the symptoms of Lss in the short term, while more cases and long-term study are needed.

Funding: None