I. Dawidson et al., Sensory stimulation (acupuncture) increases the release of vasoactive intestinal polypeptide in the saliva of xerostomia sufferers, NEUROPEPTID, 32(6), 1998, pp. 543-548
We have shown in earlier studies that xerostomia can be treated successfull
y with acupuncture. We also found that acupuncture stimulation can increase
the concentration of neuropeptides in the saliva of healthy subjects. In t
his study, the concentration of the neuropeptide vasoactive intestinal poly
peptide (VIP) was measured in the saliva of xerostomic patients in connecti
on with acupuncture treatment (AP). Patients suffering from xerostomia caus
ed by irradiation treatment, Sjogren's syndrome and other systemic disorder
s had been treated with acupuncture, Some of these patients showed an incre
ase of their salivary flow rates after the AP was completed. Seventeen pati
ents out of 65 were chosen due to their ability to produce enough saliva fo
r the radio immunoassay (RIA) analyses to be conducted prior to the start o
f AP. VIP-like immunoreactivity (VIP-LI) was measured in the chewing stimul
ated saliva of these patients before and after the whole AP (24 sessions of
30 min each). The results showed that there was a significant increase of
the concentration of VIP after the AP as compared to the measurements made
before the start of the treatment (p<0.05).
We concluded that the increase of neuropeptide VIP might be one of the mech
anisms behind the positive effect of acupuncture on the salivary flow rates
of the xerostomic patients.