Treat Ulcerative Colitis: Every Clinician Can Become A Magician in Patients' Eyes, Say Goodbye to Corticosteroid

Ulcerative colitis (UC) is an inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), characterised by inflammation localised in the mucosa of the rectum and colon (Ungaro R et al, 2017). The inflammation begins at the rectum, and spreads no more than about 20 cm (8″) into the colon.

UC can occur at any point throughout life. Progression of this disease to ulcerative colitis, extending farther up the bowel to involve the sigmoid colon, occurs in about 30-50% of those with ulcerative proctitis.

Symptoms

The most common digestive symptoms in someone with Ulcerative Colitis include:

• Bloody diarrhoea (with or without mucus)
• Rectal urgency
• Abdominal pain (that is often relieved with bowel movements)
• Tenesmus (the urge to pass a stool even when bowels are empty)
• Weight loss
• Fatigue (low energy)

Undetermined Causes

The causes of UC are undetermined.

No Cure in Modern Medicine

Although there is a range of treatments to help ease symptoms and induce remission, there is no cure.

Diagnosis

Typically, diagnosis of UC is performed with a standard sigmoidoscopy, an instrument with a tiny light and camera, inserted via the anus, which allows the physician to view the bowel lining. X-rays are not generally required, although at times they may be necessary to assess the small intestine or other parts of the colon.

Cornerstone Treatment: Corticosteroid

Conventional management is aimed at relieving symptoms and achieving remission to prevent long-term complications (Aslam N et al, 2022).

Since the 1970s, corticosteroids has remained the cornerstone for inducing remission for patients presenting with moderate-to-severe active UP.

Until the realisation that corticosteroid therapy induced remission, surgery was the mainstay of management (Caprilli R et al, 2008).

A 2001 study shew that at 30?days after the first course of steroids, 54% achieved complete remission, with a further 30% achieving partial remission. 1?year after the first course of steroids, 49% remained in prolonged response, with 22% dependent on corticosteroids and 29% requiring surgical management (Faubion WA et al, 2001).

However, corticosteroids are plagued by a myriad of side effects including osteoporosis, myopathy, cataract formation, weight fluctuations, neuropsychiatric side effects and glucose intolerance (Faubion WA et al, 2001).

Marked Transformation Desired

A 2022 review authored by Aslam N et al from the Department of Gastroenterology, University College London Hospitals, UK concluded:

“Given the associated drawbacks with immunosuppressive therapies, additional treatment options are being explored and progressing to clinical trials. With this in mind, we anticipate the therapeutic landscape and current treatment paradigms to undergo marked transformation over the proceeding decade” (Aslam N et al, 2022).

How to transform the treatment paradigms in the preceeding decade? The British researchers Aslam N et al provided no answer in their 2022 review.

These researchers are not aware that actually the treatment paradigms of UC can be instantly revolutionized right now, but no need to wait for another decade.

The game can be completely changed from today, even from this moment the reader is reading this post. The key is if we have a magic bullet medicine.

The Magic Healing Art in Ancient China

While a simple inflammation, even when only few lesions in a 15 cm segment of the digestion organ (for example, proctitis in rectum), could defeat the entire modern medicine world, few healthcare practitioners today are aware that there was a healing art 2000 years ago in China which takes effect instantly upon the start of intervention for almost any illness encountered in the first line medicine.

This marvelous healing art is acupuncture. The efficacy of the acupuncture in ancient China as described in Chinese medicine classic Huangdi Neijing was indeed marvelous: the symptom relief happens the instant the needle is in. More importantly, such instant efficacy was highly consistent, reliable and reproducible.

Instant Improvement Is A Breeze

If you understand the “hidden” principles of Neijing acupuncture, not only symptom relief for colitis is just a breeze, but eventual cure is 90% for sure. This is because not only Neijing acupuncture is extremely effective, but also it treats any illness by enhancing the body's self-healing process, but not suppress that capability like corticosteroid does.

The therapeutic effectiveness of Neijing Acupuncture is not only immediate but also highly reliable, consistent and predicable for at least all disorders with symptoms of any abnormal sensations including inflammation-caused ones, such as the sense of urgency, post-bowel movemenet discomfort, or a incomplete emptying of the bowels.

In case of UC, one of the abnormal sensations the patients' brain can perceive is the abdominal pain beneath pubic symphyses when deeply pressed.

Using Neijing acupuncture, we can relieve this pressure pain under pubic symphyses instantly with 90% certainty. The commencement of improving of bowel movement the patients can perceive will usually follow with 70% certainty just after 1-2 treatment. For a moderately severe condition (a few of small ulcerative lesions), permanent cure can be reached within 5 - 8 weekly treatments followed by once per month maintenance. Severe conditions may need a few months to half of years followed by once per month maintenance.

Where to Insert Needles to Treat UC?

In Neijing acupuncture, there is no fixed or precisely pre-determined points to insert needles. Every millimeter on the body can become a magically effective point depending on the cases.

The reason is straightforward. Take the case of UC as example, the ulcerative lesions can occur at any spot of the internal wall of rectum or colon. Suppose there is only one lesion of a 2 cm diameter, this lesion can occur at distal 2 cm, 5cm, 7cm or 15 cm of rectum, or distal 20 cm, 25cm or 30 cm of sigmoid colon..... Further more, this lesion can occur at anterior wall, left lateral wall, right lateral, or posterior wall of rectum or colon. The possibilities of the precise location of this lesion is countless. In order to get the maximum effect, each specific location of this lesion has a specific corresponding site for needle insertion.

In other words, to obtain instant and strongest powerful effect, each different location of the ulcerative lesion requires a corresponding needling site (the point of 1mm2 in size where the needle is to be inserted).

No individual patients have exactly the same pattern of the location of lesions. So there is no “one size fit all” so-called “acupoints” to treat all of the different patterns of UC for all individuals.

The exact needling insertion spot for maximum effect can only be determined by palpation case by case.

The Locations of Ulcerative Lesions (Inflammation)

In ulcerative colitis, several types were named based on the location of the inflammation as below.

Proctitis: The inflammation occurs in the lining of the rectum.

Proctosigmoiditis: Inflammation of the rectum and the last section of the colon (the sigmoid colon).

Distal Colitis: Inflammation of the distal colon. This is similar to proctosigmoiditis but starts to extend further along the colon.

Pancolitis: Inflammation of the entire colon. This will often lead to more severe digestive symptoms of pain, cramping and diarrhoea as well as well loss and low energy (Gajendran M et al, 2019).

Each different location needs different site for needling insertion. In this post, I will talk about the situation when the inflammation is located in rectum (proctitis).

Where to Insert Needles for Proctitis

As mentioned earlier, in proctitis, the inflammation occurs in the lining of the rectum. To reduce or cure the inflammation (ulcerative lesions) at rectum, there are at least 16 candidate body regions where you can, by palpation, find spots or areas which once pricked by a needle could produce an instant relief of abnormal sensation perceivable by the patient.

Note, none of these body regions are located at the pelvic floor, but instead all of them are located far from pelvic floor, although the diseased site is in pelvic floor (rectum).

Among these effective body regions, one that is most convenient is the region roughly 2cm x 4 cm in size located at the anterior-medial side of distal end of right side tibia bone (see picture).

In this 2cm x 4 cm region, you need to identify the most painful spots when pressed by your thumb. These spots are where to insert needles. Your needle must hit the most painful spot and touch the tibia bone!

If the entire rectum is inflamed, the entire anterior and medial aspect of the distal 5cm of tibia bone can become very sensitive when pressed with a finger. Then you will need to insert 4 to 6 needles to cover the entire region.

If there is only one lesion of very small size, say 1cm in diameter, there will be only one very small spot can be identified, say 1cm in diameter, on tibia bone, which is painful when pressed. In this case you may only need to insert just one needle.

Note: This distal tibia region is NOT the most powerful region for instant healing of UC with needling, but is the most convenient one both for patients and clinicians.

Instant Improvement Perceived by The Patient

Neijing acupunture takes effect in less than 3 seconds upon needle insertion. But how to verify the instant effect? This requires the patient's feedback. Let patient tell you whether there is some change of symptom he or she felt after the needle insertion.

As mentioned earlier, the most common symptoms in patients with Ulcerative Colitis include:

• Bloody diarrhoea (with or without mucus)
• Rectal urgency
• Abdominal pain (that is often relieved with bowel movements)
• Tenesmus (the urge to pass a stool even when bowels are empty)
• Weight loss
• Fatigue (low energy).

Among these symptoms, the relief in 3 seconds of abdominal pain can be easily perceived by the patient. But other symptoms, even instantly alleviated, may not be easily perceived by the patient in 3 seconds upon the needle insertion.

So if the patient has no abdominal pain at this moment, then how do we know our needle insertion worked in 3 seconds for the relief of symptoms other than pain?

No worry, we can do it by “beating around the bush”. Before needle insertion, you do a palpation by deeply pressing the upper edge of pubic symphysis toward the space above bladder or between bladder and uterus, with your three fingers (index, middle and ring finger). You may ask the patient to do this by his or herself by following your instruction.

The patients with UC will feel pain deep behind the bladder and the pain may radiate to his or her back at lower sacrum and tailbone area.

The needle insertion at distal tibia bone will instantly relieve this deep pain in less than 3 seconds. This is a fool-proof your needle insertion worked instantly and the curing process of the ulcerative inflammation in rectum kick started.

The detailed procedure treating proctitis and other types of UC using Neijing acupuncture will come soon in the form of e-books or e-tutorials.

Change the Game: Say Goodbye to Corticosteroid

Neijing Acupuncture will render all clinicians become a magician doctor in patients' eyes within 3 seconds upon the start of the intervention. It will make all clinicians more confident in easily winning patients' trust (the trust starts the moment you put a needle in), more importantly, it will help us change the entire medicine game.

The status-quo world of medicine can thus be revolutionized.

References

Aslam N et al, 2022, A review of the therapeutic management of ulcerative colitis. Therap Adv Gastroenterol. 2022 Nov 29;15:17562848221138160.

Caprilli R, Clemente V, Frieri G. Historical evolution of the management of severe ulcerative colitis ☆. J Crohns Colitis 2008; 2: 263–268.

Faubion WA, Loftus EV, Harmsen WS, et al. The natural history of corticosteroid therapy for inflammatory bowel disease: a population-based study. Gastroenterology 2001; 121: 255–260.

Gajendran M et al, 2019, A comprehensive review and update on ulcerative colitis. Dis Mon. 2019 Dec;65(12):100851.

Ungaro R, Mehandru S, Allen PB, et al. Ulcerative colitis. Lancet 2017; 389: 1756–1770.

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