東京都調布市・京王線調布駅東口徒歩0分の清野鍼灸整骨院ー肩こり・腰痛から骨折・体調不良までご相談ください。

　清野鍼灸整骨院の感染防止対策　2022.1.14.

令和4年（2022年）11月16日（水）に掲載された朝日新聞デジタルJIJICOのコラム「新型コロナウイルスに感染後の後遺症が長期化するのを防止出来る？症状改善に鍼灸治療の可能性は！？」を、英文にしました。世界中の人に、鍼灸治療の可能性を知って戴きたいためです。

英語圏のお知り合いがおりましたら、是非ご紹介をお願い致します。

Can acupuncture and moxibustion be used to treat prolonged physical symptoms after Covid-19 infection?　

Modified and translated by CFJA

Can acupuncture and moxibustion be used to treat prolonged physical symptoms after Covid-19 infection?

Three years have passed since the outbreak of COVID-19 infection in the Seafood Market in Wuhan, South China, at the end of 2019. Vaccination of healthcare workers began on February 17, 2021, and the elderly began receiving the vaccine on April 12, 2021. Although the number of deaths has decreased, there are still many people suffering from the COVID-19 sequelae. Although the effects of the virus on the human body have not yet been fully explained, it is becoming clearer how the virus affects the body after infection.

From 2019 to 2022, COVID-19 has infected 631.8 million people worldwide (6.59 million deaths) and 4.46 million people in Canada (48,494 deaths). This means that about one out of every 8.7 Canadians has been infected. At onset, symptoms include fever, cough, dyspnea and fatigue. The original Covid-19 caused many cases of severe illness and death. With the Delta variant of Covid, the probability of severe illness has gradually decreased, partly due to the progress in vaccination of the population. The Omicron variant is not thought to cause as much severe illness. However, even when the elderly( over 65 years of age)do not become seriously ill after infection, there are a great many cases of death due to worsening of underlying diseases.

There are many people who are asymptomatic when COVID-19 enters the body. After 14 days of infection with COVID-19, the probability of infecting others decreases to 0.6%. The virus is no longer detectable, but the patient’s strength has been depleted for 2 weeks since the time of onset of illness. Even though it is possible to go back to one’s daily life and go back to work, this does not mean that the physical strength that has decreased during the convalescent period will immediately return to the regular state. Muscle strength declines by about 15% after one week of bedridden living, and by about 50% after three to five weeks of bedridden living. At the same time, the general condition of the circulatory, respiratory, digestive, and other organs deteriorates as well. After 2 weeks, most of the symptoms at the onset of the disease will disappear, but there are a certain number of people who suffer from residual symptoms. There are many cases of re-infection of Covid-19 even after symptoms have disappeared, and there is a high probability that the symptoms that do not disappear will gradually worsen.

After the initial symptoms of the acute phase have reduced and the patient has recovered to the point where he/she can leave their home, receiving acupuncture and moxibustion treatment as early as possible will be helpful to support the physical condition to ensure a smooth recovery.

What is the definition of Covid-19 after effects?

According to the World Health Organization (WHO) post COVID-19 condition definition published in October 2021, post Covid-19 after effects are “symptoms that develop within 3 months of infection with the Covid-19, last at least 2 months, and cannot be explained by anything other than the Covid-19 and that may affect daily life (work and household chores)”.

Its characteristics include:
• 10-20% of patients infected with Covid-19 suffer sequelae. Its diagnosis is made 3 months after infection or recovery from the virus
• Sequelae symptoms may persist from the time of infection and onset, or they may reappear after the patient has recovered once.　
• There is no correlation between the severity of infection and the incidence of sequelae.

In “罹患後症状のマネジメント(Management of Post-associated Symptoms)”, a separate volume of the “新型コロナウイルス感染症 (COVID-19) 診療の手引き(Guide to Clinical Practice of COVID-19)” published by the Japanese Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, COVID-19 sequelae are symptoms that have persisted since the acute phase of COVID-19 infection, or that have newly or recurrently occurred and persisted during the course of the disease, without any other apparent cause, even though the infectivity has disappeared. We treat patients based on the understanding that the symptoms are likely to be Covid-19 sequelae, after confirming that the symptoms appeared after the infection, including the physician’s diagnosis and the relationship to the underlying disease.

What symptoms are aftereffects of Covid-19?

The incidence of Covid-19 sequelae varies from study to study. The reasons for this may be that the definition of sequelae is not consistent, and the timing and duration of surveys are various. The figures differ greatly depending on how many vaccinations the person has completed and which type of Covid-19 the person was infected with. According to “Nikkei Science” (November 2022 issue), which is a science magazine in Japan, one in 20 people say they have aftereffects. How long do the aftereffects persist?

According to “Management of Post-Acute Symptoms,” the duration of aftereffects is
• For 1 to 2 months; 23%
• For 3 to 5 months: 34%
• For 6 months to 1 year; 28%
• For more than 1 year; 15%

The top five symptoms in the percentage of symptom occurrence in “Nikkei Science” (November 2022 issue) are as follows.

Conventional Covid-19 before Delta strain
• Malaise
• Olfactory disturbance
• Taste disorder
• Dyspnea
• Hair loss

Delta variant
• Malaise
• Olfactory disorder
• Taste disorder
• Hair loss
• Headache

Omicron variant　
• Malaise
• Headache
• Sleep disturbance
• Dyspnea
• Cough

In addition to the typical symptoms listed above, symptoms that are considered post-Covid sequelae vary widely from person to person, including depressed mood, breathlessness, palpitations, insomnia, body aches, and erectile dysfunction. The degree of symptoms also varies. For example, fatigue may be relieved after a night’s sleep, or it may be so intense that “my body feels heavy like lead and I can’t move,” “I can’t think,” “I can’t speak,”or “I can’t concentrate”. Some patients may experience such intense fatigue that they cannot move after a few hours or days of taking a walk or doing even light housework. If the Covid sequelae become prolonged, the patient may not be able to take a daily or social life as he or she wishes, and schooling, employment, and family life may be severely affected. Dr. Koichi Hirahata, Director of Hirahata Clinic in Japan, says that many people are forced to take a temporary retirement or leave their jobs due to the physical discomfort they experience after being diagnosed with a Covid-19 infection. He also says that the lack of understanding of those around people who have gotten Covid infection about the inability to work due to the Covid-19 aftereffects is creating emotional distress.The increase in the number of patients with COVID-19 sequelae could carry a risk of becoming a severe social problem.

How does Covid-19 aftereffects affect a person’s health?!

The Covid-19 sequelae seem to gradually make it more difficult to lead a daily life as they become more severe. When we talk to patients who come to our clinic after attending an outpatient Covid-19 clinic, they seem to have been instructed by their doctors that they should lead a less strenuous life for two months and take appropriate actions corresponding to their illness in order to avoid a transition to severe sequelae. Those with post-Covid sequelae caused by the Omicron variant tend to have a high rate of difficulty in their daily lives, regardless of their age. According to the diagnostic criteria for physicians as indicated by the Japan Agency for Medical Research and Development (AMED) Research Group “for the Development of Treatment Methods and Treatment Guidelines for Chronic Fatigue Syndrome,” the performance status (PS), in which indicators of general condition are rated on a 10-point scale according to the level of daily living. The Grade 6 condition is “On days when he is in good condition, he can do light work, but rests at home more than 50% of the week”. “The patient is able to take care of him/herself and does not need assistance, but is unable to engage in normal social activities or light work.” The condition is considered to be the Grade 7 condition. People with post-Covid syndrome may have repeated “crashes” and transition to “ME/CFS” before reaching this state, and they may continue to have “PEM” and then become bedridden. (See definitions below)

i) Crash　
• A condition in which a person is bedridden for several days and can hardly move. It can be caused by unacceptable amounts of exercise, stress or mental work.

ii) ME/CFS (Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome)
• Intractable disorder characterized by extreme and prolonged deterioration of physical condition after exertion, sleep disturbance, higher brain dysfunction, and autonomic neuropathy.

iii) PEM (Post-exertional malaise)
• A symptom of sudden onset of strong malaise 5 to 48 hours after mild exertion or stress.

Therefore, it’s sure that Post-Covid sequelae can be a gradual progression and worsening of symptoms, even if the patient keeps staying home and tries to recover.

How does your daily routine disturb your recovery from Covid-19 aftereffects?

We have conducted a questionnaire survey on daily living for those who are undergoing demonstrative treatment for Covid aftereffects. On October 9, 2022, Seino, who is our master, gave a lecture on the possibility of treatment for Covid sequelae at the 3rd Acupuncture and Moxibustion Association of Osaka Prefecture Academic Seminar in 2022. At that time, he reported the tendency to be the object of guidance in daily life, but so far he has not found any remarkable tendency to be caused by this. However, the following tendencies have been observed in our clinical experiences.

• 　Drinking and having a lot of cold drink and cold food
• 　Living in low room temperatures without heating in winter
• 　Living below 25°C (77°F) with constant use of air conditioning in summer
• 　Using air conditioning while sleeping in summer
• 　Insufficient sleep
• 　Poor quality of sleep, such as sleeping late at night
• 　Sleeping on a bedding directly on the flooring　
• 　Sleeping in a north-facing room with no sunlight
• 　Bathing in a bathtub filled with hot water for a long time

All of the above are considered to interfere with the functional activities of internal organs. We believe that these are difficult lifestyles to maintain good health. When we proposed the above lifestyle improvements, we have received comments from those who have implemented them that their physical condition has improved. Another way to prevent infection that can be done on a daily basis is to gargle your nose. Gargling your nose two to three times daily may help prevent the symptoms from worsening.

Is it possible to make use of the perspective of Eastern medicine in improving the Covid-19 sequelae?

The infectious period is considered to be from 2 days prior to the onset of illness to 14 days after the onset of illness. Recently, more and more patients are coming to our clinic around 2 weeks after the onset of Covid infection. Symptoms at that time are divided into those with symptoms that have continued for about 2 weeks since the onset of the disease and those with newly emerged symptoms which have emerged 1 to 2 weeks later after the onset. In some cases, patients may have both. Through the empirical treatment of post-Covid syndrome, we have experienced that improvement is rarely achieved in a single visit, and more frequent and repeated treatments are required compared to patients with similar symptoms without the Covid infection. However, we have definitely experienced cases in which symptoms are improved by repeated acupuncture and moxibustion treatment and cupping therapy for purifying blood.

Half of the patients with post-Covid syndrome improve with just taking rest without any treatment. On the other hand, there are those who have difficulty improving and those who continue to deteriorate even with taking rest. There was a case in which a 93 year old Japanese patient in Japan who was hospitalized for 9 days after the onset of the disease, became bedridden one week after discharge from hospital, and was ordered by his doctor to withdraw from medical treatment, regained his daily life after one month of moxibustion treatment. It may have been just a lucky case, but it is an event that makes us feel the high possibility of moxibustion treatment. If you are suffering from post-Covid syndrome, you may want to consider treatment from the perspective of eastern medicine to prevent worsening of symptoms. Our clinic also offers home visit treatment, so if you have difficulty going out, please feel free to contact us.”

現在、JIJICOには39本のコラムが掲載されております。下記にご興味がありましたら、ご覧いただきたく思います。
朝日新聞デジタル『マイベストプロJAPANーJIJICO』に掲載されている全コラムは、以下の通りです。

◇柔道整復治療が有効なコラム◇
「柱の角に足の指を引っ掛けた後痛みが引かない！！　その腫れは骨折かも！？」
「骨が折れたなと思ったらすべき事は何か　冷やし過ぎは良くない？」
「脱臼した時に関節を自分で戻すのは危険　もし骨折を伴っていたらどうなる？」
「捻挫は放置しても治らない　有効な治療方法は？」
「打撲をしたら最初にするべきことは？　冷やすだけで治るのか」
「肉離れって何？筋肉は切れたら元に戻るの」
「アキレス腱が切れたらどうしたらいいの？腱は元に戻るのか」
「膝に力が入らなくなるのは靭帯が切れている可能性も？」
「尻もちをついたあと痛くて座れなくなるのは骨折かも？」
「正座が出来ないのは膝に問題が！？その原因と治療法について」
「関節に違和感を覚えた時はどうすれば良いか？」
「20～30歳代の膝痛は歩く時の習慣が原因？膝の痛みを治すには！？」

◇鍼灸治療が有効なコラム◇
「ぎっくり腰の原因は？湿布や冷やすのは効果的？予防策について」
「帯状疱疹に伴う神経痛になったときに選択する治療法について」
「咳が出たとき疑うべきは風邪？　咳が出る原因とその予防策」
「不眠は夜遅い食事が原因かも？不眠解消に必要なことは」
「眼の疲労回復にはローソクの炎が有効！？ 視力回復にも役立つ？」
「鎮痛薬の飲みすぎで頭痛が起きる！？薬に頼らない頭痛対策は？」
「不妊は低体温が原因？日常生活の改善で不妊治療の成功確率は上がる？」
「ホットカーペットの上で寝ると体力が低下！！体を温めているつもりが実は冷えの原因？」
「かゆみ」の原因と予防方法！　アトピー性皮膚炎の「かゆみ」を薬や保湿剤以外で治す方法はあるのか？」
「花粉症対策はマスクだけで大丈夫？　東洋医学を活用して花粉症予防を！」
「逆子（さかご）は妊婦さんの不調を胎児が知らせるサイン！？逆子治療に鍼灸治療は有効！」
「産後の体調を良くする方法は？産婦の日常生活開始時期が大きく関与する！？」
「授乳中に冷たい物を飲食すると赤ちゃんに影響が？授乳中のお母さんが気をつけるべき生活習慣について」
「新型コロナウイルスに感染後の後遺症が長期化するのを防止出来る？症状改善に鍼灸治療の可能性は！？」

◇養正治療が有効なコラム◇　
　※養正治療とは生活指導や運動療法（ヨーガ治療）の事です
「朝風呂や朝のシャワーは自律神経のバランスに影響？入浴で気を付けるべき習慣とは」
「細菌やウイルスから身を守る免疫力を高める方法とは？」
「免疫力アップに必要な体温維持。ウィルス対策に最適な室温維持と暖房機器の使い方、運動など」
「コロナウイルス対策に必要な衛生管理と自己鍛錬による免疫強化」
「マスク内の呼吸は酸欠状態？精神や肉体活動の低下を防ぐ方法とは」
「テレワークによる運動不足で心肺機能が低下？その解消法とは」
「人体の9つの穴を清潔にすることと免疫力アップでウイルス対策を！」
「就寝中のクーラーは体調不良を引き起こす？体温低下が招く危険性とは」
「低体温の人は暑がり？クーラーの中で生活する本当の怖さとは？」
「入浴後や入浴中の柔軟体操は危険？！体力向上や柔軟性を高める運動はいつ行えば効果的か？」
「熱中症が一番多いのは室内？熱中症対策にはクーラーの使用が有効？」
「日当たりの悪い寝室で寝ていると体調不良になる？理想的な寝室の環境とは！？」
「北向きの部屋にいると病気になりやすい？日当たりの確保が病気回復には大切！？」
「人生100年時代を生きる体力の転換期は62歳？体力低下を防ぐ秘訣はあるのか！？」
「青春時代の体力転換期は26歳？体力低下を防ぐ秘訣はあるのか！？」

医学に基づいたYOGAを学べる
　清野メディカルヨーガ

令和5年2月6日（月）
　東京都調布市・武蔵野の地
　　清野鍼灸整骨院　清野充典

清野鍼灸整骨院は1946年（昭和21年）創業　現在77年目
※清野鍼灸整骨院の前身である「清野治療所」は瘀血吸圧治療法を主体とした治療院として1946年（昭和21年）に開業しました。清野鍼灸整骨院は、「瘀血吸圧治療法」を専門に治療できる全国で数少ない医療機関です。

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［ 2023.02.06 ］