針刺改善顳顎關節疾患病例報告

Acupuncture Relieves Temporomandibular Disorder: A Case Report

65歲女性罹患顳顎關節疾病（temporomandibular disorder；TMD），左側耳前方疼痛緊繃感，牽連至左臉頰及左頸部已三年，先後經牙科和復健科治療後，症狀未明顯改善，最後由牙醫師轉介至中醫科就診。本個案經中醫診斷為經筋病，臨床取穴以上關、下關、顴、頰車、地倉、足三里、合谷、水突和阿是穴為主，病患每周接受2~3 次的針刺治療半年後，疼痛指數由原本的7~8分降為2~3分，並取得令病患滿意的療效。對於罹患顳顎關節疾病的患者而言，中醫針刺療法是一個值得推薦的選擇。

A 65-year-old woman was diagnosed with temporomandibular disorder 3 years ago. She suffered pain and tightness in front of the left ear, which progressed to left cheek and left neck. The patient had been treated by her dentist and physiatrist, but the symptoms still remained. Therefore, the patient was referred to our Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) clinic to receive acupuncture treatment by her dentist. The diagnosis of TCM was Jingjin disorder. The acupuncture points included Shangguan (GB3)、Xiaguan (ST7)、Quanliao (SI18)、Jiache (ST6)、 Dicang (ST4)、Zusanli (ST36)、Hegu(LI4)、Shuitu (ST10) and Ashi points. After the treatment course of 2~3 times a week for half a year, the visual analogue scale (VAS) decreased remarkably from 7~8 to 2~3 and the patient was satisfied by the improvement. We concluded that acupuncture treatment improved her temporomandibular disorder. It is worthwhile to recommend TCM as an alternative treatment method for the patient with temporomandibular disorder.