The effects of a single acupuncture treatment in horses with severe recurrent airway obstruction

Reasons for performing study: Acupuncture may be recommended for horses with 'heaves' because it is being increasingly applied to treat human asthma. Therefore, its efficacy was investigated in horses with this asthma-like disease. Objective: To evaluate the efficacy of a single acupuncture treatment for the relief of airway obstruction in heaves-affected horses. Methods: The efficacy of a single acupuncture treatment was tested in 10 heaves-affected horses, and the effect of removal from the dusty stall environment in 5 heaves-affected horses. Before treatment, horses were stabled to induce airway obstruction and, apart from trips to the laboratory for pulmonary function measurements, they remained stabled for the duration of each treatment. The severity of airway obstruction was quantified by measurement of lung function before treatment (baseline), and at 20, 60, 120 and 240 mins and 24 h after the following treatments administered in random order: halter restraint and patting, a single acupuncture treatment by an experienced acupuncturist, and a single acupuncture treatment using predetermined points (recipe) by a veterinarian with no acupuncture training. In a second study, horses were untreated and remained either in their stall or in a paddock for all measurements of lung function, after baseline readings were made. Results: In the first study, after all treatments, there was a temporal improvement in maximal change in pleural pressure, pulmonary resistance, dynamic compliance, respiratory rate, and tidal volume that lasted less than 24 h. There was no specific effect of acupuncture treatment. In the second study, removal from the dusty environment did not produce an improvement in lung function in the first 6 h. We conclude that most of the improvements in lung function observed in the study were due to handling. Conclusions: Assessed objectively, a single acupuncture treatment during an attack of heaves causes no more improvement in lung function than does handling the horse. Potential relevance: Acupuncture should not replace conventional medical treatments for heaves.