Li Yu-chen, director of the hospital's acupuncture department, said that under the program that began April 1 last year and will last until Dec. 31 this year, a patient can have three acupuncture treatments a week and take the specially prepared Chinese medicine.
He said his department has been treating about 60 stroke victims with acupuncture each day, and that as a result, many of them have regained language fluency and the ability to hold chopsticks, while others have become emotionally more stable, less dizzy and less prone to headaches, or have seen improvements in limb strength.
Stroke is brought on by bleeding in the brain or by lack of blood flow to the brain, known as ischemia. It can cause death or permanent disability, such as paralysis on one or both sides of the body.
Li said the hospital plans to establish a cerebral palsy center by the end of this year to integrate Western medicine with acupuncture and Chinese medicine for treating stroke victims.
