Researchers in Hong Kong have carried out a randomised controlled trial to study the effects of acupuncture on lazy eye in children, and have found that it is significantly more effective than standard treatment.
A total of 88 children with a lazy eye (anisometropic amblyopia) were randomly assigned to receive either the standard treatment of two hours daily patching of their sound eye, or five sessions of acupuncture per week, for 15 weeks. The visual acuity of the lazy eye improved by an equivalent amount in both groups. However, the proportion of children whose amblyopia was resolved, was significantly higher in the acupuncture group (42%) compared with the patching group (17%). The researchers conclude that acupuncture could eventually become an alternative treatment option for lazy eye.
(Randomised Controlled Trial of Patching vs Acupuncture for Anisometropic Amblyopia in Children Aged 7 to 12 Years. Archives of Ophthalmology, Dec 2010.)
Author: Robin Costello
I offer traditional Chinese acupuncture in Exeter, from a tranquil clinic a mile from the city centre, and next to the University of Exeter. I graduated originally from the London School of Acupuncture and Traditional Chinese Medicine’s 3 year full time Acupuncture Diploma (DipAc) course. I am on the practitioners register of the British Acupuncture Council (MBAcC), a regulatory and professional body with an entry standard of a full three year undergraduate degree level training.
I have worked in a hospital in south west China, deepening my knowledge and using acupuncture and Chinese massage (tuina) as the treatment of choice in its country of origin. I have taught Chinese medicine in colleges, the NHS and at university level. I also practise Qi Gong, and Chinese dietary therapy, that is the medicinal use of ordinary foods, chosen to help achieve particular therapeutic effects in different individuals.
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