Treatment of Atopic Dermatitis With Acupuncture and Chinese Herbal Medicine

Background: Atopic dermatitis is a chronic inflammatory skin condition that sometimes requires multiple modalities for control of symptoms, including emollients and steroids. Few studies have examined the use of Traditional Chinese Medicine for atopic dermatitis. Objective: To describe the use of acupuncture and Chinese herbal medicine in a case of atopic dermatitis. Design, Setting, and Patient: Single case report of a 17-year-old patient diagnosed with atopic dermatitis since age 3. Intervention: Acupuncture treatment included acupoints along the Spleen and Heart meridians. Chinese herbal medicine included an herbal prescription of Xiao Feng San. Main Outcome Measure: Symptoms of atopic dermatitis. Results: The patient reported an improvement in depression, hyperpigmentation, facial edema, and slight pruritus improvement after the third treatment. Pretreatment Beck Depression Inventory score of 25 indicated moderate depression. Posttreatment Beck Depression Inventory after 3 months of treatments indicated no symptoms of depression. Symptoms reduction in depression were maintained at 3-month follow-up. Conclusions: More research is needed and case studies performed to support our findings. Symptom reduction in pruritus and hyperpigmentation and improvements in depression need to be confirmed and validated in future studies.