To explore the effects of acupuncture combined with Linggui Zhugan Decoction on patients with thirst of maintenance hemodialysis(MHD).Methods:A total of 106 patients admitted to Zhengzhou Traditional Chinese Medicine Hospital with MHD thirst were selected as the research objects and according to random number table method, they were divided into a control group(n=53)and an observation group(n=53).The control group was treated with Western medicine，and the observation group was treated with acupuncture combined with Linggui Zhugan Decoction on the basis of the control group.Both groups were treated for 4 weeks.The changes of hematology，saliva biochemistry，secretory function，neuropeptide，related score，stimulated saliva volume and curative effect were observed in the 2 groups before and after treatment.Results:1)There was no significant difference in urea nitrogen，serum calcium，serum phosphorus，parathyroid hormone，urea decline rate，urea clearance index and standardized protein decomposition rate between the 2 groups after treatment(P>0.05).2)After treatment，the pH，salivary flow index，Na+/K+，neurotensin(NT)and the ratio of stimulated saliva volume in the 2 groups were higher than those before treatment，while Na+，K+，leptin，serum neuropeptide Y(NPY)，thirst intensity score，oral dryness score and thirst visual analogue score(VAS score)in the observation group were lower than those before treatment(P＜0.05).The observation group was lower than the control group(P＜0.05).3)After treatment，the clinical curative rate and total effective rate in the observation group were significantly higher than those in the control group(P<0.05).Conclusion:Acupuncture combined with Linggui Zhugan Decoction can improve saliva secretion function，increase neuropeptide and improve thirst in patients with MHD.