Research Progress in Clinical Application and Mechanisms of Acupuncture for Post-Stroke Spasticity Based on Tendon Theory

Corresponding author: CHEN Si-Si, 22194744@qq.com

DOI: 10.12201/bmr.202510.00001

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  Abstract: Abstract：Post-Stroke Spasticity (PSS) refers to a motor dysfunction characterized by spasticity that occurs after a stroke. As one of the common complications of stroke, it is mainly manifested by increased muscle tone, spasticity of the flexor muscles in the upper limbs and extensor muscles in the lower limbs, and is often accompanied by hyperreflexia. Without timely intervention and treatment, it may lead to muscle atrophy and joint contracture, which seriously reduce the patients self-care ability and quality of life. Relieving muscle spasticity and promoting the recovery of motor function in hemiplegic limbs have become a key link in the post-stroke rehabilitation process.The clinical manifestations of PSS are consistent with Jing Syndrome (syndrome of spasm) and Jin Disease (tendon disease) recorded in the classics of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM). The location of the disease is in the tendons, and its pathogenesis is mainly dominated by liver blood deficiency, blood stasis with yang impairment, and malnutrition of the meridians and tendons, mostly belonging to the syndrome of ben xu biao shi (deficiency in the root and excess in the branch—a TCM syndrome type indicating the coexistence of fundamental deficiency of healthy qi and secondary excess of pathogenic factors).Traditional TCM therapies such as Chinese materia medica (CMM) and acupuncture have a long history of being used in the treatment of PSS with definite curative effects, thus holding important clinical significance. Acupuncture is widely applied in the clinical treatment of PSS due to its advantages of minimal invasiveness and favorable efficacy; however, the acupuncture methods selected vary under different diagnostic and therapeutic approaches.This article systematically reviews the progress of clinical studies on the application of three approaches—Shujin Tiaoshen, Shujing Liqi, and Songjie Jinjie—in the treatment of PSS, and briefly explores their mechanisms of action. It illustrates that the application of these three acupuncture methods can reduce muscle tone and improve limb function, thereby promoting the patients rehabilitation process. The purpose of this article is to provide a new strategy for the clinical application of acupuncture in the treatment of PSS.

  Key words: Post-stroke spasticity；Meridians and tendons；Xingnao Kaiqiao；Huici; Knife-needle；

  Submit time: 1 October 2025

  Copyright: The copyright holder for this preprint is the author/funder, who has granted biomedRxiv a license to display the preprint in perpetuity.
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