Oriental medicine uses acupuncture at the GV01 acupoint with great success to treat diarrhea. It significantly reduced the colonic motility and inflammation in colitic rats. Naloxone pretreatment blocked these effects. The therapeutic effects of acupuncture at GV01 in colitis may involve endogenous opioid pathways.

A mongrel male dog of three years old was referred to the Seoul National University Veterinary Teaching Hospital following a one month history of glaucoma. On ophthalmic examination, hyphema, glaucoma, uveitis, iridal mass, and loss of vision were noted in the right eye. Ultrasonography and computed tomography revealed a mass with involvement of the entire uvea. Radiographic evaluation did not reveal any evidence of distant metastasis. The right eye was surgically removed because of the high likelihood of neoplasia. A histologic diagnosis of malignant uveal melanoma was made.

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ABSTRACT. Electroencephalography (EEG) is an effective method for the evaluation of sedation or anesthesia. The purpose of this study was to examine the sedative effect of acupuncture by electroencephalographic spectral edge frequency (SEF) in Miniature Schnauzer dogs (4.2-6.1 kg, 1-2 years old). The acupuncture points "GV20 and Yintang" were applied for 20 min. Sedation level was assessed before, during, and after acupuncture by spectral edge frequency 95 values and the Ramsay sedation score. The spectral edge frequency 95 values were significantly reduced during acupuncture on GV20 or Yintang point and returned to the baseline values after acupuncture releasing. The Ramsay sedation score (RSS) also showed the acceptable sedation level during acupuncture. It was concluded that an acupuncture application at GV20 or Yintang point used in the present study would be a valuable method to induce the sedation in dogs. KEY WORDS: acupuncture, canine, spectral edge frequency.

FACIAL nerve paralysis has been recorded in several domestic species and man (Braund and others 1979, Kern and Erb 1987), and is associated with infection, trauma, neoplasia, otitis media, otitis interna, hypothyroidism, and diabetes mellitus (Earll and Kolb 1967, Rendano and others 1980, Fenner 1994, Noya and Pardo 1997. However, the aetiology is usually unknown. Although facial nerve paralysis may be improved by treating underlying causes, the prognosis is poor. Idiopathic facial nerve paralysis might improve over weeks or months without treatment, but it might persist for months or years (Joseph 1994). This short communication describes the use of acupuncture to treat idiopathic facial nerve paralysis in a dog.A seven-year-old female Yorkshire terrier dog was referred to Seoul National University Veterinary Medical Teaching Hospital. The clinical signs were drooping of the right ear and lip, drooling and retention of food in the mouth, and the dog was unable to close its right upper eyelid. These signs were acute in onset and had been present for 35 days before examination. The dog had been treated with 1 mg/kg of prednisolone (Solondo; Yuhan) per day at a local veterinary hospital, but the signs had not improved.Neurological examination indicated that the palpebral reflex was absent on the right eye but normal on the left eye; the corneal and pupillary light reflexes were normal bilaterally. The visual following movements, obstacle testing, and visual placing response were normal. The left eye responded normally to menace, and although the dog could not close its right eye, a positive menace was observed by the retraction of the eyeball. Neither strabismus nor nystagmus were observed. The right ear skin sensation was almost absent and the dog was unable to move its ear. Other cranial nerve functions, postural reactions, segmental spinal reflexes and locomotion were normal.On ophthalmic examination, the dog's right eye showed slight corneal ulceration and opacity. The Schirmer tear tests were normal bilaterally.A complete blood count of the dog was normal. The serum alkaline phosphatase activity (131 U/litre, reference range 18 to 94 U/litre) and serum cortisol concentrations (184-9 U/litre, reference range 55-2 to 138-0 U/litre) were slightly elevated. Serum thyroxine (T4) and glucose concentrations were normal. No radiographic abnormality was observed in the skull.On the basis of neurological, ophthalmic, biochemical and radiographical examinations, idiopathic facial nerve paralysis was diagnosed.As the dog had not responded to previous medical treatment, acupuncture was performed. Local acupuncture points L120, ST2, ST7, SI18, TH17 and GB3, and distal acupuncture points GB34 and LI4 were used (Fig 1). The local points were treated contralaterally to the affected side, and the distal points were treated bilaterally for 20 minutes. The dog was treated every other day for the first week, and then once a week for the next three weeks. During this period, the only other treatment the dog received was artificial...