Moxibustion

Moxibustion
Intervention
Japanese Moxibustion ("Sketches of Japanese Manners and Customs", 1867)
MeSH	D009071

Moxibustion (Chinese: 灸; pinyin: jiǔ) is a traditional Chinese medicine therapy using moxa, or mugwort herb. It plays an important role in the traditional medical systems of China, Japan, Korea, Vietnam, Tibet, and Mongolia. Suppliers usually age the mugwort and grind it up to a fluff; practitioners burn the fluff or process it further into a cigar-shaped stick. They can use it indirectly, with acupuncture needles, or burn it on the patient's skin.

Terminology

The word moxa comes from Japanese mogusa (艾, mugwort) (the u is not very strongly enunciated ) blended with combustion "burning", hence literally "burning of mugwort". Yomogi (蓬) is the name of the herb in Japan. Chinese uses the same character as mogusa, but pronounced differently: ài, also called àiróng (艾絨) (meaning "velvet of ài").

The Chinese character for moxibustion is (灸術) jiǔshù.

Korean folklore attributes the development of moxibustion to the legendary emperor Dangun, though it was more likely brought into the country from a Chinese colonial prefecture.

Theory and practice

Practitioners use moxa to warm regions and acupuncture points with the intention of stimulating circulation through the points and inducing a smoother flow of blood and qi. It is believed by some, for example at Mugwort (Encyclopedia of Alternative Medicine by Clare Hanrahan), that mugwort acts as an emmenagogue, meaning that it stimulates blood-flow in the pelvic area and uterus. It is claimed that moxibustion militates against cold and dampness in the body and can serve to turn breech babies.

traditional moxibustion set from Ibuki (Japan)

Practitioners consider moxibustion to be especially effective in the treatment of chronic problems, "deficient conditions" (weakness), and gerontology. Bian Que (fl. circa 500 BC), one of the most famous semi-legendary doctors of Chinese antiquity and the first specialist in moxibustion, discussed the benefits of moxa over acupuncture in his classic work. He asserted that moxa could add new energy to the body and could treat both excess and deficient conditions. On the other hand, he advised against the use of acupuncture in an already deficient (weak) patient, on the grounds that needle manipulation would leak too much energy.^{[citation needed]}

A huge classical work, Gao Huang Shu (膏肓俞), specialises solely in treatment indications for moxa on a single point (穴).^{[citation needed]}

Practitioners may use acupuncture needles made of various materials in combination with moxa, depending on the direction of qi flow they wish to stimulate.

There are three methods of moxibustion: Direct scarring, direct non-scarring, and indirect moxibustion. Direct scarring moxibustion places a small cone of mugwort on the skin at an acupuncture point and burns it until the skin blisters, which then scars after it heals. Direct non-scarring moxibustion removes the burning mugwort before the skin burns enough to scar, unless the burning mugwort is left on the skin too long. Indirect moxibustion holds a cigar made of mugwort near the acupuncture point to heat the skin, or holds it on an acupuncture needle inserted in the skin to heat the needle.

Use in medicine

An overview of systematic reviews published in 2010 found that there are several conditions for which moxibustion may be effective, but the research the reviews were based on were of such low quality the results are uncertain. In addition, many of the positive trials were conducted in China, which makes the results questionable as concern has been expressed that publication bias may result in a falsely positive presentation of Chinese trials.

In traditional Chinese medicine there is a belief that moxibustion of mugwort is effective at increasing the cephalic positioning of fetuses who were in a breech position before the intervention. A 2005 Cochrane review stated that there is "limited evidence" that moxibustion may be useful for in reducing the need for external cephalic version, but there is "insufficient evidence to support the use of moxibustion to correct a breech presentation" due to a lack of well-designed randomised controlled trials to evaluate the safety and efficacy of moxibustion.

Meta-analysis of the current evidence regarding moxibustion in treatment for ulcerative colitis concluded that evidence is insufficient to show that moxibustion is an effective treatment.

Moxibustion may be useful as part of the treatment of stroke patients.

Parallel uses of mugwort

In many religions of North and South America that pre-date European colonization, mugwort is regarded as a sacred plant of divination and spiritual healing, as well as a panacea. Mugwort amongst other herbs was often bound into smudge sticks. Europeans placed sprigs of mugwort under pillows to provoke dreams; and the herb had associations with the practice of magic in Anglo-Saxon times.^{[citation needed]}

See also

• Acupuncture
• Acupuncture point
• Traditional Chinese medicine
• Traditional Japanese medicine (Kampo)
• Traditional Korean medicine
• Traditional Tibetan medicine
• Traditional Mongolian medicine

External links

• W Michel: Far Eastern Medicine in Seventeenth and Early Eighteenth Century Germany
• Hermann Buschoff, The gout, more narrowly searcht, and found out; together with the certain cure thereof. London 1676. W Michel, ed. Fukuoka, March 2003. (This is the first Western text on moxibustion, introducing the word "Moxa". Japanese introduction by the editor, English text; pdf)