See It With Your Own Eyes Ultrasound Pharmacopuncture Varo Korean Medicine Clinic · Hwagok Stn, Gangseo-gu, Seoul

Two patients with post-stroke equinovarus foot (EVF) — both in the chronic stage, past the golden window for rehabilitation — were treated with acupotomy while the spastic muscles were viewed live on ultrasound. After four sessions over two weeks, step-length ratio improved from 0.67 to 0.87 and from 0.68 to 0.85, with gains in gait speed, left–right symmetry, balance and muscle spasticity (MAS), and no adverse events. The case shows the potential of a minimally invasive approach that releases only the spastic muscle while preserving surrounding tissue.

Fifteen patients living with Parkinson’s disease for more than five years were studied to see whether integrative Korean and conventional medicine reduces levodopa equivalent daily dose (LEDD) and polypharmacy. Mean LEDD in the integrative group was 321.71 mg (median 200 mg), with only two patients above the 300 mg level associated with motor complications; polypharmacy was 13.3% and excessive polypharmacy 6.7%, both lower than previously reported for usual care. The findings suggest that integrative care centred on ultrasound pharmacopuncture and herbal medicine may reduce medication burden and the hospitalization and social costs that follow from it.

A case of tennis elbow (lateral epicondylitis) in the extensor carpi radialis brevis (ECRB) caused by repetitive use. An orthopedic ultrasound had been read as normal and pain persisted after a steroid injection, but re-examining the deep tendon on ultrasound at our clinic revealed thickening and damage in the deep ECRB fibres. Targeting the lesion precisely under ultrasound, three pharmacopuncture treatments (PDRN + 5% dextrose) were given over five days: the pain score (NRS) fell from 7 to 0 and the tennis-elbow score (PRTEE) from 82 to 11, with no recurrence during follow-up.

A 49-year-old patient with five years of left heel pain (chronic Achilles tendinopathy with calcific tendinitis). Nine steroid injections and ten PRP treatments had brought little relief and surgery had been recommended; instead, a four-stage needling protocol was performed under ultrasound guidance — managing paratendinitis, releasing fascia with pharmacopuncture, addressing neovascularization, then stimulating the periosteum at the tendon insertion with electroacupuncture — over 12 sessions in 47 days. Follow-up ultrasound (color Doppler) showed reduced intratendinous neovascularization, and foot and ankle function (FAOS) improved steadily through two months, indicating a non-surgical option for chronic tendinopathy that has not responded to conventional care.

Two women (42 and 37) had endured more than 20 years of recurring allergic rhinitis and chronic sinusitis — congestion and discharge severe enough to disturb conversation and sleep. Combining Socheongryong-tang herbal medicine with acupuncture aimed precisely at the sphenopalatine ganglion (SPG) under ultrasound guidance for 8–12 weeks produced clear improvement in nasal endoscopy findings, quality of life (RQLQ) and rhinitis symptom scores; the benefit held for three months after treatment ended, with no adverse events. The case suggests an alternative for patients not adequately helped by steroid nasal sprays.

A case report and trial protocol covering two chronic-stage patients (a man of 63.5 and a woman of 35.7) whose gait was unstable from post-stroke equinovarus foot, treated with ultrasound-guided acupotomy. After four sessions over two weeks, step-length ratio improved markedly — from 0.61 to 0.86 and from 0.67 to 0.88 — along with gait speed, left–right symmetry, postural balance and muscle spasticity (MAS), with no adverse events. Because the technique releases only the spastic ankle muscles while preserving nerves and vessels, a randomized controlled trial has been designed to verify it.

An ultrasound study mapping precisely which anatomical structures lie around PC7 (Daereung), a frequently used wrist point, and how they relate to the median nerve. Measuring 50 adults with no ultrasound abnormality (100 normal wrists), the median nerve appeared within the point in 31.9% of wrists and, when present, occupied about 22% of the width of PC7; the study gives concrete figures for the zone that can be needled while safely avoiding the nerve (0–0.74 mm from the palmar tendon). It establishes an anatomical basis for safer, more accurate ultrasound-assisted acupuncture.

A 46-year-old patient whose fracture was not visible on chest X-ray was diagnosed with a rib fracture on ultrasound and treated accordingly. Locating the fracture site with ultrasound, purified bee-venom pharmacopuncture and combined Korean medicine care were given 18 times over four weeks: chest pain on turning in bed fell from NRS 8 to 2, and pain eased immediately after each treatment for about three hours. The case shows how ultrasound aids both the diagnosis of rib fracture and the safety and accuracy of pharmacopuncture.

Three patients with excessively heavy menstrual bleeding were treated with Haedok-samul-tang. Over three months (five cycles) the herbal medicine was combined with electroacupuncture and infrared therapy while menstrual blood loss (PBAC score) and menstrual pain (NRS) were assessed: both the PBAC score and menstrual pain decreased. The case suggests Haedok-samul-tang can be effective for heavy menstrual bleeding.

A cell-based study clarifying how a water extract of Cheongpi (Citri Unshius Pericarpium Immaturus) suppresses inflammation. Treating inflamed macrophages with the extract significantly reduced inflammatory mediators (NO, PGE2, TNF-α, IL-6) and increased the anti-inflammatory cytokine IL-10, while inflammatory signalling pathways (MAPK, NF-κB) were inhibited and no cytotoxicity was observed. The basic research shows that Cheongpi can ease inflammation by promoting IL-10 production.