Objective To investigate the effect of crossbow medicine needle therapy on motor function and expression of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) after spinal cord injury in rats.Methods A rat model of hemisection spinal cord injury was established.A total of 100 Sprague-Dawley rats were randomly divided into control group,sham-operation group,spinal cord injury group,simple acupuncture group,and crossbow medicine needle therapy group,and each group was further divided into 3-,7-,14-,and 21-day subgroups,with 5 rats in each subgroup.The BBB method was used to evaluate the changes in hindlimb motor function,and Immunohistochemistry was used to measure the changes in the expression of BDNF in the spinal cord.Results Compared with the spinal cord injury group,the crossbow medicine needle therapy group had a significantly higher BBB score at all time points (P<0.05) and significantly higher expression of BDNF at 7,14,and 21 days (P<0.05),which was positively correlated with BBB score (r=0.717,P<0.05).Conclusions Crossbow medicine needle therapy can significantly improve motor function and promote the expression of BDNF after spinal cord injury in rats.