# Clinical Study on the Application of Acupuncture in the Postoperative Rehabilitation of Dogs Affected by Acute Thoracolumbar Disc Herniation

## TL;DR

This study found that adding acupuncture to physiotherapy helps dogs recover faster after spinal surgery for disc herniation.

## Contribution

The study demonstrates acupuncture's effectiveness in improving postoperative ambulation recovery in dogs with spinal disc herniation.

## Key findings

- Dogs receiving acupuncture in their rehabilitation protocol had a higher likelihood of regaining ambulation.
- Acupuncture integration showed potential for faster recovery in postoperative thoracolumbar disc herniation cases.

## Abstract

This study investigated the efficacy of acupuncture and electroacupuncture within a physiotherapy protocol for the postoperative rehabilitation of dogs affected by acute disc extrusion, as a multimodal approach for faster recovery of ambulation. Results from 41 patients indicated that the inclusion of acupuncture in the rehabilitation protocol led to a higher probability of regaining the ability to ambulate.

Acupuncture has been widely incorporated into rehabilitation protocols for dogs and cats because of its potential analgesic efficacy. The aim of this study was to evaluate the potential positive effect of integrating acupuncture and electroacupuncture techniques on the recovery of ambulation capacity in non-ambulating paraparetic patients undergoing physiotherapy in the postoperative period following mini-/hemilaminectomy for thoracolumbar spinal cord decompression due to acute disc extrusion. Forty-one patients were included and underwent descriptive and analytical statistical analysis, divided into two groups: dogs that received a physiotherapy protocol with acupuncture and dogs that received physiotherapy only. The results showed that the dogs in the acupuncture group had a higher likelihood of regaining ambulation.