The Effects of Acupuncture at the Zusanli (ST36) Acupoint on Blood Pressure and Cardiomyocytes

Objectives. If acupuncture is able to prevent hypertrophy of the heart, it can prevent the heart from overloading and thus prevent heart failure or sudden death. We therefore studied the effects of acupuncture on blood pressure and cardiomyocytes. Methods. Rats with spontaneous hypertension were divided into two acupuncture treatment groups and one non-treatment group. The treatment groups were classified as sham acupoint and Zusanli (ST36) acupoint groups. The measurements recorded included changes in tail pressure, femoral arterial pressure, left ventricular weight (LVW), whole heart weight (WHW), body weight (BW), LVW/BW and WHW/BW ratios and the size of the cardiomyocytes. Results. The results showed that blood pressure of subjects which were needled on the Zusanli (ST36) point for 3 days dropped, although there were no significant changes in the weight and size of the heart. Acupuncture at the Zusanli (ST36) point seemed to improve hypertension in the short term. Significant changes in femoral arterial pressure were observed in all rats when they were treated at the Zusanli (ST36) point for 6 days. In the Zusanli (ST36) acupoint group, the LVW/BW and the WHW/BW ratios did not change significantly. Cardiomyocytes significantly reduced in size in the Zusanli (ST36) treatment group. Conclusions. Acupuncture at the Zusanli (ST36) point not only lowers blood pressure, but also prevents hypertrophy of cardiomyocytes in spontaneous hypertensive rats (SHR). Therefore, acupuncture could be a good treatment modality for hypertension and hypertrophy of the heart.