Pathological changes in internal organs after blocking low hydraulic resistance channels along the stomach meridian in pigs

Abstract

Objective. The correlation between meridians and organs (Zang-fu) is an important aspect of meridian theory. The objective of this paper is to investigate the pathological changes in the organs resulting from blocking low hydraulic resistance channel (LHRC) along the stomach meridian by injecting gel in pigs so as to offer some insight into the correlation between meridians and internal organs. Methods. Four white piglets and twelve black minipigs were divided into four batches and were observed in different periods. Each batch included two pairs of pigs and each pair matched two pigs with similar conditions among which gel was injected into 68 low hydraulic resistance points along the the stomach meridian in the experimental pig and the same amount of saline was injected into the same points in the control pig. The state of stomach and intestine was observed 610 weeks after the blocking model was developed. Results. The results showed that there were bloated stomach or/and intestine in all the experimental pigs while there were normal states in seven control pigs except one dead during the experiment. Conclusion. The findings confirmed that the blockage of LHRC along the stomach meridian can influence the state of stomach and intestine, leading to a distension on stomach or/and intestine. © 2013 Wen-Ting Zhou et al.