Acupuncture

BACKGROUND: Acupuncture is frequently used to manage pediatric cerebral palsy (CP), yet updated evidence is needed to guide future research and clinical practice. METHODS: Seven databases were searched from 1994 to 26 June 2023. Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) involving body, scalp, or ear acupuncture for managing CP, excluding acupoint injection, catgut embedding, electro-acupuncture, or laser acupuncture, were included. RESULTS: Twenty RCTs with 1797 participants were analyzed...

Moxibustion, traditional Chinese medicine treatment, involves the warming of specific acupuncture points of the body using ignited herbal materials. Evidence suggests beneficial effects of moxibustion in several brain diseases including epilepsy, however, whether moxibustion pretreatment impacts on seizures and what are the underlying mechanisms remains to be established. Evidence has suggested the purinergic ATP-gated P2X7 receptor (P2X7R) to be involved in the actions of moxibustion. Moreover, P2X7R signalling is now well established to contribute to long-lasting brain hyperexcitability underlying epilepsy development...

BACKGROUND/PURPOSE: The high incidence of hip fracture is an important problem among dementia patients because of their higher risk of falls and balance deficits due to a lack of physical activity. The aim of this study was to investigate whether traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) therapy could reduce the risk of hip fracture in dementia patients. METHODS: We identified 38,071 patients who were first diagnosed with dementia from January 1, 2000, to December 31, 2017, from the database of the 2000 Longitudinal Generation Tracking Database (LGTD 2000) provided by the Health and Welfare Data Science Center (HWDC) in Taiwan...

Acupuncture is an important therapy method in traditional Chinese medicine for treating intervertebral disc degeneration (IVDD), offering a wide range of applications. It is based on the theory of Chinese veterinary medicine and combines the stage of the disease course and individual differences for syndrome differentiation and treatment. However, there are few studies on the acupuncture treatment of cervical disc degeneration (CDD) in rabbits. Treatment based on syndrome differentiation is the basic principle of Chinese veterinary treatment...

PURPOSE: To investigate the effect of nonpharmacological methods on anxiety before breast surgery, using the meta-analysis method. DESIGN: A meta-analysis. METHODS: Nine electronic databases were searched to identify studies published up to October 2023. The study was carried out in accordance with Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Review and Meta-analyses 2020 and Cochrane 2021 recommendations. The Risk of Bias 2 tool was used to assess the risk of bias...

BACKGROUND: There is a dire need to ensure higher education institutions employ effective pedagogy in their educational programs. Hybrid teaching has received increased attention in recent decades due to its effectiveness in improving learning outcomes. There is a lack of studies exploring students' views on hybrid teaching in acupuncture programs in the South African context. OBJECTIVES: Therefore, this study explored acupuncture students' views of hybrid teaching in the acupuncture program...

OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to assess the clinical efficacy of acupuncture combined with modified Blood and Vessel Expelling Blood Stasis Tang in the treatment of poststroke patients experiencing facial paralysis and insomnia. METHODS: A total of 120 patients with poststroke facial paralysis and insomnia were selected from the Department of Acupuncture and Moxibustion at the First Affiliated Hospital of Tianjin University of Traditional Chinese Medicine between January 2021 and January 2023...

Functional dyspepsia (FD) is a brain-gut interaction disorder located in the stomach and duodenum, which has complex pathophysiological mechanisms, and there is no effective treatment for FD. Acupuncture and moxibustion have been proven to have definite and significant efficacy on FD. Focusing on the affected area and combined with the potential pathophysiology of FD, here we discuss the possible mechanisms of acupuncture and moxibustion in treating FD to guide future clinical and experimental research. We argue that the pathological causes of FD can be roughly divided into gastrointestinal dysfunction, duodenal low-grade inflammation, visceral hypersensitivity, and duodenal intestinal barrier and microbial imbalance...

Anal fistula is a rapidly developing anorectal disease that can lead to anal dysfunction if left untreated. Minimally invasive surgery is an important treatment option for anal fistula, as it can reduce the risk of anal sphincter injury and protect anal function. However, postoperative complications such as infection, pain, bleeding, edema, and fat liquefaction can occur, resulting in slow wound healing thus negatively impacting the patient's quality of life. Recent studies have shown that Chinese herbal therapy has distinct pharmacological effects and is more effective in treating postoperative complications in anal fistula patients compared to conventional drug therapy...

Osteoporotic vertebral compression fractures (OVCFs) occur frequently in the elderly, with percutaneous vertebroplasty (PVP) being the major clinical treatment at present. How to improve the patient's surgical cooperation while ensuring surgical safety is the focus of clinical research. This study explores the influence of acupuncture anesthesia (AA) on the safety, inflammatory response, and cellular immunity of OVCF patients undergoing PVP, which may provide a more reliable safety guarantee for future treatment of OVCFs...

Long COVID is a poorly understood condition characterized by persistent symptoms following the acute phase of COVID-19, including fatigue, cognitive impairment, and joint pain. Acupuncture, a key component of traditional Chinese medicine treatment, has shown potential in alleviating long COVID symptoms. However, the molecular mechanisms underlying its therapeutic effects remain largely unknown. In this study, we employed bioinformatics approaches to explore the potential molecular mechanisms of acupuncture's therapeutic effects on long COVID symptoms...

For many of the complementary and alternative (CAM) medicine methods, it is biologically plausible to expect that they could provide additional benefits in the treatment of major depressive disorder (e.g., enhanced initial response, augmentation, and tolerability) when combined with conventional treatments. Although most likely not comprehensively, herein we critically review current explicit clinical data pertaining to the most extensively evaluated CAMs in this setting: physical activity/exercise, mind and body methods, acupuncture, light therapy, diet, probiotics, various nutrients, and herbal preparations...

INTRODUCTION: Poststroke shoulder pain is a common complication that severely affects the recovery of upper limb motor function. Acupuncture has positive analgesic effects in treating poststroke shoulder pain, and studies have demonstrated the efficacy of transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) in treating patients with this pain. However, whether acupuncture combined with tDCS has a superior rehabilitation effect on poststroke shoulder pain is currently unknown. We aimed to observe the effect of the combined intervention on poststroke shoulder pain and explore its possible central analgesic mechanism...

INTRODUCTION: Major depressive disorder (MDD), the second leading cause of disability globally, is considered to be associated with a consequent deterioration in the quality of life and can lead to a major economic burden on medical service and suicide-related costs. Previous research has shown that acupuncture may be beneficial for treating MDD. However, there is a lack of rigorous evidence from previous studies comparing acupuncture with antidepressant medications. This study aims to assess the therapeutic potential of acupuncture in the management of depressive disorders...

Central post stroke pain (CPSP) is a neuropathic pain condition prevalent in 8% to 35% of stroke patients. This systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to provide insight in the effectiveness of available pharmacological, physical, psychological, and neuromodulation intervention in reducing pain in CPSP patients (PROSPERO Registration: CRD42022371835). Secondary outcomes included mood, sleep, global impression of change, and physical responses. Data extraction included participant demographics, stroke aetiology, pain characteristics, pain reduction scores, and secondary outcome metrics...

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Fatigue is a pervasive and debilitating symptom of multiple sclerosis (MS) that severely impairs quality of life and daily functioning. This emphasizes the essential need for complementary therapies that go beyond conventional therapies. Although acupuncture is gaining popularity in MS management, there is a critical lack of rigorous research on its effectiveness in alleviating symptoms. METHODS: A comprehensive literature search was conducted across multiple databases, focusing on studies evaluating acupuncture's effectiveness in alleviating fatigue in MS patients...

The objective of this study was to examine articles on acupuncture from past to present, revealing prevalent research trends, showcasing global productivity, identifying international collaborations, and highlighting influential publications and journals in the field. We acquired a comprehensive dataset comprising 9340 articles pertaining to acupuncture that were published within the time frame spanning from 1980 to 2023. These articles were sourced from the Web of Science and underwent rigorous analysis through a diverse set of bibliometric techniques...

OBJECTIVE: To summarize the current available evidence and to outline recommendations for the future research of acupuncture for patients after percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). DESIGN: Seven electronic databases were searched: China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI), Wan Fang Database, Chongqing VIP Chinese Science and Technology Periodical Database (VIP), Chinese Biomedical Literature Database (CBM), Cochrane Library, PubMed, and EMBASE. All studies on acupuncture for patients after PCI were included...

The impact of acupuncture on knee function and pain intensity following knee replacement remains controversial. Therefore, we categorized the post-surgery recovery period into three phases: short-term (≤ 2 weeks), intermediate term (2 weeks ~3 months) and long-term (> 3 months), and then assessed the effectiveness of acupuncture in improving function and alleviating pain at different stages following knee replacement. This meta-analysis included randomized controlled trials that compared acupuncture intervention with either no-treatment or a sham group after knee replacement...

PURPOSE: To (1) describe and compare the prevalence of using of complementary health approaches, focusing on mind and body practices, and reasons for use among cancer survivors, and (2) examine characteristics associated with use among those with a recent and non-recent diagnosis of cancer compared to those without a previous cancer diagnosis. METHODS: Using data from the 2022 US National Health Interview Survey, prevalence estimates were derived for using any complementary health approach, by category (manipulative body-based [chiropractor, acupuncture, massage], creative [music therapy, art therapy], and mind-body [meditation, guided imagery, yoga]), and reasons for use...