Introduction

This article lists >420 abstracts that document the use of acupuncture (AP) in four main areas of human & animal reproductive & genitourinary health and disease. Most abstracts were downloaded at the end of April 1999 from the online databases of:

Acupuncture Progress Database [http://users.med.auth.gr/~karanik/english/acuprog.html]

and

PubMed Medline [http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/PubMed/medline.html].

It also includes abstracts from section M1 to M3 of an earlier bibliography, Acupuncture & homeostasis of body adaptive systems: Acupuncture bibliography: AP & the Urogenital / Adrenal System [http://users.med.auth.gr/~karanik/english/hels/helsfram.html].

For ease of use, the abstracts were shortened & the terminology & codes of the listed acupoints were standardised.

WARNINGS

1. AP success rates in reports from China, Japan & some eastern-block states were much higher than from similar Western trials. It is unknown at this time whether this anomaly is due to better Oriental protocols, cultural reluctance by Oriental therapists and patients to report poor results, or less critical diagnosis or follow-up assessment of patients.
2. AP had no significant benefits in some Western trials. In contrast to most trials in adults, AP failed to control of post-operative vomiting in children. Also, the degree of hypoalgesia attainable by electro-AP alone would be unacceptable in routine western surgery. However, combination of AP with reduced doses of local- or general- anaesthetics may be useful in high-risk cases, warfare & developing nations.
3. Oriental protocols in chronic, difficult cases often cite prolonged treatment, for example every 1-2 d for 5-10 times/course, for 1-3 courses. Assuming treatment costs of US$20-60/session, 5-30 sessions would cost US$ 100-1800. Apart from those costs, it would be difficult to apply time-intensive protocols in busy workers in western societies, where "time-is-money", & where clients demand & expect rapid results from a few pills. A pill for every ill is still what people will.
4. Western therapists and patients would question the use of long needles, sometimes inserted up to 3" deep into to the abdominal or pelvic cavities. Others would seriously question the routine use of perineal points CV01 & GV01 in general- as compared with specialist- clinics.
5. Many Eastern reports stress the importance of willing Deqi, & directing it with special needling methods, to the genitourinary targets, especially the groin, genitalia & perineum.
6. Western tolerance of strong needling, inducing strong Deqi, is questionable. Needle shock, & failure to return for repeat treatments would be likely.
7. However, laser-AP has given good results in some trials. Low-power lasers cause no pain & usually imperceptible Deqi except in very sensitive subjects. This suggests that strong Deqi may not be necessary for good clinical results.

Use of this Bibliography

1. For best (fastest) results, store this bibliography offline for repeated use (search, editing etc) of its details. First create a Directory called GEN_URO on your hard disk.

Into that Directory, download ALL of the following files:

Be very careful to retain all of the original file names (i.e. the names in Column 1, above). This is because the files have extensive cross-links, and changing any of the filenames may break those links.

Note that files gu2.htm, gu3b.htm, gu3d.htm & gu4.htm are large - each may take several minutes to download from the Web.

Using an Internet Browser, navigate the data OFFLINE (i.e. on your own PC). Click on any of the Filenames & take it from there. Each of the files links directly or indirectly to the others.

Preferably start at gu1.htm & become familiar with all of the files. Later, you may decide to concentrate on the Summary of Points and Protocols (files 3a, 3b, 3c, & 3d).

Check http://homepage.eircom.net/~progers/rogpubco.htm every 1-2 months to see if any of the files has been updated. In that case, download & replace any updated file.

2. If you have a very fast modem, you may work with the files online. A user with a slow modem, or whose phone line is prone to failure, will find online attempts too slow & tedious. In that case, option 1, above, is preferable.

3. Clinicians & researchers, who may not want to save all of these files, may wish to bookmark file 3a for future reference. It has links to the other files.

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