Text Division of Chinese Acupuncture Medicine, Physician Che-Pin Chang

What is the role of Traditional Chinese Medicine in the team?

1. Western medicine team will be assisted to improve the post-injury and post-operative discomfort with assistance in recovery.
2. Providing acupuncture and Chinese medicine treatment for patients with brain injury.
3. Providing families and patients with health education in Chinese medicine, including prohibitions in food and drink, and massage on acupuncture points.

How can traditional Chinese medicine help patients with brain injury?

Acute Phase

1. Early intervention can improve hydrocephalus, speed up conscious recovery of patient, and improve comma scale.
2. Improve gastrointestinal function and help excrement after traumatic brain injury.
3. Assist with muscle recovery and articulate with habilitation treatment.
4. Reduce risk of critical illness and the days of hospitalization.

Chronic Stage

1. Reduce the headache and dizziness after brain injury.
2. Improve the sleeping quality for patients with posttraumatic stress disorder.
3. Improve the cognitive function, and reduce the risks of dementia and cerebral stroke after brain injury. 

How can patients use resources in traditional Chinese medicine?

1. Patients who require Chinese medicine treatment during hospitalization may submit the request for consultation with Chinese medicine to the attending physician or western medicine or team members. The patients may appoint a physician or the physician on shift that month, if the family does not appoint one.
2. The neurosurgeon will prescribe consultation sheet if he/she believes that the patient is suitable for consultation, and the Chinese medicine physician will visit in 24 hours after receiving the consultation sheet and start the treatment.
3. The Chinese medicine physician expects to determine the syndromes through performing the four diagnostic method, including observation by looking, listening and smelling, questioning, and pulse reading and palpation, incorporated with tongue examination and pulse examination to draft the treatment guidelines for acupuncture, Chinese herbal medicine and other treatment.

How is the traditional Chinese medicine consultation charged?

According to Assistive Medical Treatment Project for Hospitalized Patients under Western Medicine of National Health Insurance with Specific Disease, patients with craniocerebral injury shall meet the classification code of specific diseases for hospitalization diagnosis. In-hospital patients in 6 months from the date of diagnosis shall be reimbursed by the National Health Insurance with treatment expenses during hospitalization.

Procedures for Traditional Chinese Medicine Consultation

Traumatic Brain Injury

Surgery or in-hospital observation

Consultation with Chinese Medicine after stabilization

Acupuncture or medicinal treatment

Speeding up recovery of brain injury

Introduction to Common Chinese Medicine for Brain injury

Patients with brain injury often suffer from edema and anoxia in brain tissues, and resulting in low functionality. Hematoma, bruising and metabolites generated by hemorrhage also impede cerebral circulation and metabolism, or resulting in partial inflammation with syndromes of weak vitality, phlegm retention, blood stasis, and clearing stagnated heat. The introduction to Chinese herbal medicine used for brain injury can help you understand how Chinese medicine physicians treat brain injury. However, due to the variation in clinical patterns and personal physique may differ, the treatment is still subject to the diagnosis and principles of treatment adopted by your attending physician and the prescription provided.

Instruction of Massage on Acupuncture Points for Common Symptoms of Brain Injury 

Patients with mild traumatic brain injury sometimes do not need to be hospitalized but may experience temporary sequelae often due to mechanism of injury. The following explains some common symptoms and ways of self-acupuncture point massage. The following acupuncture points are provided for use in health education. If the symptoms could not be relieved, consult with your Chinese medicine doctor. Only the diagnosis and treatment conducted by the physician will benefit your recovery.

Symptoms	Simple Description	Recommended Acupuncture Points for Massage
Dizziness, Nausea, Vomiting	Brain injury induced tissue edema, rising brain pressure, and the impact when inner ear balance and organs are injured.	Neiguan － Inner Pass	Shuaigu
		Between the two tendons of the wrist while griping, three finger-wide from the wrist.	Straight from the tip of the ear, approximately half height from the root of the hair to the eyebrow.
Headache	Common brain traumatic sequelae, which are more likely to occur as a result of insufficient rest or excessive fatigue.	Hegu	Taichong
		The highest point of the bulging part when the thumb and index fingers are close together.	Sutura between the big toe and the index toe.
Depraved Appetite	Brain injury could cause swallowing difficulty, loss of smell and taste, poor memory or attention, and the difficulty with diet and lack of interests.	Yingxiang	Zusanli
		Intersection between nasolabial folds and the parallel line of alae of the nose	Four-index wide under the lateral geniculate nucleus and one thumb-wide next to the shank.
Insomnia, Anxiety	Brain injury could cause sleep apnea, nyctohemeral rhythm inversion, PTSD, pain…etc. All could affect the sleep quality.	Shenmen	Yintang
		Fisting and wrist bending, inside the hand tenor of the pinky, and same height as the wrist line.	Between the eyebrows.
Fatigue, Lack of Energy	Brain injury affects nervous impression or hypothalamus, and awakening center, resulting in fatigue and lack of energy.	Baihui	Philtrum
		Straight from the tip of the year to the central line of the head, intersected on the top of the hear, and there be a dent when pressed.	The center point between the nose and labial fold. Press gently.