Effects of acupuncture at Pericardium-6 and Stomach-36 on nausea, sedation and gastrointestinal motility in healthy dogs administered intravenous lidocaine infusions

St. James ML, Kosanovich DAL, Snyder LB, Zhao Q, Jones BG, Johnson RA · PLOS One · 2019 December 05

Objective

To investigate the effects of targeted acupuncture at Pericardium-6 and Stomach-36 on gastrointestinal transit times, sedation, and nausea associated with intravenous lidocaine infusions in healthy dogs.

Conclusions

Acupuncture at Pericardium-6 and Stomach-36 did not alleviate lidocaine-associated nausea or sedation and did not affect gastric emptying or gastrointestinal transit in clinically normal dogs.

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Insights

Targeted acupuncture did not reduce lidocaine-related nausea or sedation, nor did it alter digestive transit in healthy dogs.

In a randomized, blinded crossover study, healthy adult Beagles ate barium-marked spheres before receiving no acupuncture, targeted acupuncture at Pericardium-6 and Stomach-36, or non-target acupuncture at Lung-5 and Bladder-55. Each treatment was followed by an intravenous lidocaine infusion, while radiographs tracked sphere movement through the digestive tract and observers repeatedly assessed sedation and nausea. Neither targeted nor non-target acupuncture changed gastric emptying, intestinal transit, sedation, or nausea compared with no acupuncture. Lidocaine infusion increased nausea and sedation over time in all treatment conditions, indicating that the selected acupuncture points did not counter these lidocaine-associated effects.