Document Type : Short Communication

Author

PhD of Molecular Genetic, Department of Stem Cells, Royan Institute for Biotechnology, Isfahan, Iran

Abstract

Auriculotherapy (also auricular therapy, ear acupuncture, and auriculoacupuncture) is a health care procedure based on the idea that auricle is a microsystem reflecting the entire body. In this microsystem, a point is considered for each part of the body in the auricle. By manipulating any specific point in the auricle, the corresponding part of the body is stimulated. The physical, mental, or emotional health of individuals is affected by exclusive stimulation of the given points. This therapeutic approach can contribute to the treatment of various diseases. The Holy Quran is a comprehensive source of various sciences, where a great deal of knowledge can be obtained by contemplating its holy verses. The authors of this study put forward the view that this therapeutic approach is initially introduced in chapter 18 of the Holy Quran (verses 10-11 and 18), called “al-Kahf” or“The Cave”. In these verses, it read; “when the youths sought refuge in the cave, they said: 'Lord give us from your mercy and furnish us with rectitude in our affair” (10) “for many years we sealed up their hearing in the cave” (11) and “You might have thought them awake, though they were sleeping” (18). The phrase “sealed up their hearing” has been translated “we stamped their ears and they became anesthetized”. Accordingly, the authors of this study believe that the phrase “sealed up their hearing" in the second verse denotes what is now considered as the basis of the auricular therapy. Also, auriculotherapy can be regarded as one of the interpretations of these verses.

Keywords

  1. Oleson TD, Kroening RJ, Bresler D E. An experimental evaluation of auricular diagnosis: the somatotopic mapping of musculoskeletal pain at ear acupuncture points. Pain 1980; 8(2): 217-229.
  2. Oleson T. Auriculotherapy manual. 2003: Churchill Livingstone New York, NY, USA.
  3. Barrett S. Auriculotherapy: A skeptical look. Acupuncture Watch 2008; 2.
  4. Quah-Smith I, Litscher G, Rong P,
     Oleson T, Stanton G, Pock A, et al. Report from the 9th International Symposium on Auriculotherapy held in Singapore, 10–12 August 2017. Medicines (Basel). 2017; 4(3): 46.
  5. Yang H. Dan zhi xiao yao yin combined with auricular-point-pressing for treatment of optic atrophy-a clinical observation of 51 cases. Journal of traditional Chinese medicine 2004. 24(4): 259-262.
  6. Rodríguez-Mansilla J,  González-López-Arza M V,  Varela-Donoso E,  Montanero-Fernández  J, Jiménez-Palomares M,  Garrido-Ardila E M. Ear therapy and massage therapy in the elderly with dementia: a pilot study. J Tradit Chin Med 2013; 33(4): 461-7.
  7. Stanton G. Auriculotherapy in Neurology as an Evidence-Based Medicine: A Brief Overview. Medical acupuncture, 2018. 30(3): 130-132.
  8. Sheu J J, Wu C S, and Lin H C. Association between obstructive sleep apnea and sudden sensorineural hearing loss: a population-based case-control study. Archives of Otolaryngology–Head & Neck Surgery 2012; 138(1): 55-59.
  9. Daividson Hearing Aid Center. Sleep Disorders and their Effects on Hearing Loss. 2018; Available from: https://davidsonhearingaids.com/sleep-disorders-and-their-effects-on-hearing-loss.