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An autoimmune disease is a condition arising from an abnormal immune response to a normal body part. In other words, an autoimmune disorder is a malfunction of the body’s immune system that causes the body to attack its own tissues. There are at least 80 types of autoimmune diseases. Nearly any body part can be involved.1
CONTENTS
SYMPTOMS
CAUSES
TREATMENTS
SYMPTOMS
Common symptoms include low grade fever and feeling tired. Often symptoms come and go. Other symptoms include joint pain, weight loss, recurrent rashes or hives, difficulty concentrating or focusing, and also hair loss or white patches on the skin or inside the mouth. Women are more commonly affected than men. Often they start during adulthood.2
CAUSES
The cause is generally unknown. Some autoimmune diseases such as lupus run in families, and certain cases may be triggered by infections or other environmental factors. Some common autoimmune disease include celiac disease, diabetes mellitus type 1, Graves disease, inflammatory bowel disease, multiple sclerosis, psoriasis, rheumatoid arthritis, and systemic lupus erythematosus. Many factors cause or trigger this condition, such as an altering body substance, the entrance of foreign substances, and the malfunction of cells that control antibody production.3
TREATMENTS
Related Acupuncture Points :
LI-4, LI-11, ST-36, GB-39, SP-6, GV-14, BL-11, BL-20, BL-23, BL-24, BL-25, BL-26, BL-27, BL-28, and CV-12.
Acupuncture treatment do not completely cure this condition, but it reduces its symptoms. The acupuncture treatment targets many body parts including kidney, blood, bone marrow, stomach, and spleen. The treatment mainly deals with Yang function of the body.4
Moreover, acupuncture activates the defense systems. It influences specific and nonspecific cellular and humoral immunities; activates cell proliferation, including blood, reticuloendothelial, and traumatized cells; and activates leucocytosis, microbicidal activity, antibodies, globulin, complement, and interferon. It modulates hypothalamic-pituitary control of the autonomic and neuroendocrine systems, especially microcirculation, response of smooth and striated muscle, and local and general thermoregulation.
The acupoints with immunostimulant effects include LI-4, LI-11, ST-36, GB-39, SP-6, GV-14, BL-11, BL-20, BL-23, BL-24, BL-25, BL-26, BL-27, BL-28, and CV-12. Some, such as BL-47, are immunosuppressive. Antifebrile points include GV-14 and ST-36. Reactive reflex SHU points, MU points, and earpoints are useful in organic diseases. Applications of acupuncture include treatment of inflammation and trauma; stimulation of tissue healing in burns, ulcers, indolent wounds, ischemia, necrosis, and gangrene; infections; post-infection sequelae; fever; autoimmune disease; allergies; anaphylaxis and shock; and treatment or prevention of side effects from cytotoxic chemotherapy and ionizing radiation. Acupuncture therapy may inhibit neoplastic cells.5
Footnotes
- What is Autoimmunity? – autoimmune.pathology.jhmi.edu – 2017, http://autoimmune.pathology.jhmi.edu/whatisautoimmunity.html
- 10 signs you have an autoimmune disease and how to reverse it – mindbodygreen.com – 2013, http://www.mindbodygreen.com/0-8843/10-signs-you-have-an-autoimmune-disease-how-to-reverse-it.html
- Autoimmune Disorders – merckmanuals.com – 2017, http://www.merckmanuals.com/home/immune-disorders/allergic-reactions-and-other-hypersensitivity-disorders/autoimmune-disorders
- AUTO-IMMUNE DISEASES: A CHINESE MEDICINE VIEW – maciociaonline.blogspot.co.id – 2017, http://maciociaonline.blogspot.co.id/2013/01/the-treatment-of-autoimmune-diseases.html
- Acupuncture for immune-mediated disorders. Literature review and clinical applications – ncbi.nlm.nih.gov – 1992, https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/1581655