자폐스펙트럼 장애 치료를 위한 수기요법 경혈에 관한 임상적용 현황분석

An Analysis on the Clinical Application of Meridian Point in Manual Therapy for the Treatment of Autism Spectrum Disorders

Objectives We aimed to analyze the clinical application of meridian point in manual therapy for the treatment of autism spectrum disorders (ASD). Methods We searched the trials that investigated the therapeutic effects of manual therapy on ASD and mentioned the meridian points regardless of the control and the experimental group through several countries database. For trials that met the cri- teria, we analyzed the characteristics of the included studies and the frequency of use for acupuncture points and meridians. Results 24 trial studies were included. Among them 23 studies were randomized controlled trials (RCTs) and 1 study were non-RCT. Regarding frequency of use, ST36 acupuncture points was used most frequently (11 times) while governor vessel, con- ception vessel, and stomach meridian were used more than 30 times. Conclusions In the study, we could analyze widely used acupuncture points and meridians of manual therapy for the ASD. This study can be a guideline for the manual therapy of ASD. However, there is a limitation that all of included studies were pub- lished in one country. Therefore, additional research related to this is considered necessary.