European Journal of Integrative Medicine最新文献

{"title":"Opinion: A 2025 review of chiropractic spinal manipulation for headaches was bound for null results","authors":"Zachary E. Scott ,&nbsp;Robert J. Trager ,&nbsp;Casper Nim ,&nbsp;Dean L. Smith","doi":"10.1016/j.eujim.2025.102591","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.eujim.2025.102591","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Introduction</h3><div>A systematic review by Ceballos-Laita et al. in 2025 published in the European Journal of Integrative Medicine (DOI: 10.1016/j.eujim.2025.102462) concluded the effectiveness of chiropractic spinal manipulation for cervicogenic, tension-type, and migraine headaches was uncertain, with very low evidence certainty. We highlight limitations in the review’s methods which were bound to lead to a null result that undermine its validity.</div></div><div><h3>Conclusion</h3><div>Methodological flaws, including, post-hoc protocol deviations, heterogeneity, inconsistencies and potential bias cast doubt on the review’s findings. Clinicians and stakeholders should interpret its results cautiously, considering existing meta-analyses examining spinal manipulation for specific headache types and populations.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":11932,"journal":{"name":"European Journal of Integrative Medicine","volume":"81 ","pages":"Article 102591"},"PeriodicalIF":1.7,"publicationDate":"2025-11-29","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145733033","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Stakeholder preferences for traditional Chinese medicine services: A systematic review of discrete choice experiments in integrative healthcare","authors":"Meiyu Zhu ,&nbsp;Daiying Wu ,&nbsp;Xiaoting Sun ,&nbsp;Tongyu Zhang ,&nbsp;Chunmei Zhang","doi":"10.1016/j.eujim.2025.102592","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.eujim.2025.102592","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Introduction</h3><div>Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) is increasingly being integrated into modern healthcare systems worldwide. Understanding stakeholder preferences for TCM services is essential for developing culturally appropriate, patient-centered models of integrative care. This systematic review aims to synthesize and assess evidence from discrete choice experiments (DCEs) to reveal stakeholder preferences for TCM services.</div></div><div><h3>Methods</h3><div>A systematic literature review was conducted in PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, CINAHL, PsycINFO, CNKI, Wanfang, and SinoMed databases up to December 2024. Studies were included if they used DCE methodology to examine stakeholder preferences for TCM services among patients, healthcare providers, or the general population. Non-empirical articles and reviews were excluded. Two reviewers independently conducted the screening, data extraction, and quality appraisal. Data were synthesized narratively, and semi-quantitative analyses were used to evaluate the frequency, importance, and significance of each attribute. The review protocol was registered in PROSPERO (CRD420250632293).</div></div><div><h3>Results</h3><div>A total of 23 studies were included. Attributes were primarily identified through literature review and expert consultation. Service cost and service convenience were the most frequently examined attributes. Among the 124 identified attributes, 87.1 % were statistically significant. Service experience, therapeutic effects, and service model were most often ranked as the most important attributes. Willingness-to-pay (WTP) varied considerably, with the highest values observed for service experience.</div></div><div><h3>Conclusions</h3><div>Stakeholders place considerable value on cost, convenience, and service quality when choosing TCM services. These findings provide important evidence to support the development of personalized, patient-centered TCM service models and inform health policy and practice to enhance the accessibility and acceptance of TCM.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":11932,"journal":{"name":"European Journal of Integrative Medicine","volume":"81 ","pages":"Article 102592"},"PeriodicalIF":1.7,"publicationDate":"2025-11-29","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145836857","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"The efficacy and safety of Shensong Yangxin capsule combination therapy in chronic heart failure combined with atrial fibrillation: A systematic review and meta-analysis","authors":"Heng Sun ,&nbsp;Zuoying Xing ,&nbsp;Genhao Fan ,&nbsp;Jinyu Huang ,&nbsp;Yucai Hu ,&nbsp;Boyong Qiu ,&nbsp;Yankun Song ,&nbsp;Yongxia Wang","doi":"10.1016/j.eujim.2025.102590","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.eujim.2025.102590","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Introduction</h3><div>In recent years, ShenSong YangXin capsule (SSYX) has gained widespread application in China as an adjunctive therapy for patients with chronic heart failure combined with atrial fibrillation (CHF-AF). However, its efficacy and safety profile remain subject to debate, and there is a notable lack of relevant systematic reviews and meta-analyses on this topic.</div></div><div><h3>Methods</h3><div>A comprehensive search was conducted across seven databases up to August 25, 2025, identifying eligible randomized controlled trials (RCTs). Meta-analysis, subgroup analysis, and sensitivity analysis were performed using RevMan 5.4 and Stata 15.1. The Risk of Bias 2.0 tool was used to evaluate study quality, and publication bias was assessed with Egger’s test in Stata. Trial sequential analysis and the GRADE framework were utilized to assess the cumulative evidence and certainty of outcomes. The study protocol was prospectively registered with PROSPERO (CRD42023482018).</div></div><div><h3>Results</h3><div>The meta-analysis included 17 RCTs comprising a total of 1756 patients from China. Results indicated that SSYX combined with conventional medication significantly improved clinical efficacy in patients with CHF-AF [RR 1.18 (95 % CI 1.11, 1.25), <em>p</em> &lt; 0.00001] and reduced the incidence of major adverse cardiovascular events (MACE) [RR 0.31 (95 % CI 0.23, 0.41), <em>p</em> &lt; 0.00001]. Statistically significant improvements were also observed in the following outcomes: B-type natriuretic peptide, N-terminal pro-B-type natriuretic peptide, left ventricular ejection fraction, left ventricular end-diastolic diameter, left ventricular end-systolic diameter, QT dispersion (QTd), ventricular rate, and AF duration. Adverse reactions were reported in 11 trials. According to the GRADE framework, one outcome (MACE) was supported by moderate-certainty evidence, three outcomes (clinical efficacy, QTd, and ventricular rate) were graded as low-certainty, and the remaining six outcomes were assessed as having very low-certainty evidence.</div></div><div><h3>Conclusion</h3><div>The combination therapy incorporating SSYX showed potential benefits compared to conventional treatment alone in patients with CHF-AF. However, the overall certainty of evidence is limited. Therefore, these findings require careful interpretation and further large-scale, rigorously designed RCTs are warranted to provide more robust evidence regarding the efficacy and safety of SSYX.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":11932,"journal":{"name":"European Journal of Integrative Medicine","volume":"81 ","pages":"Article 102590"},"PeriodicalIF":1.7,"publicationDate":"2025-11-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145733034","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Effectiveness and safety of adjuvant therapy of chinese herbal medicine for adenomyosis: A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials","authors":"Li Huang ,&nbsp;Xiaolan Yin ,&nbsp;Yan Wang,&nbsp;Shaobin Wei,&nbsp;Xiaoli Ji,&nbsp;Chengcheng Yang","doi":"10.1016/j.eujim.2025.102588","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.eujim.2025.102588","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Introduction</h3><div>Chinese herbal medicine (CHM) has long been extensively applied in China for the management of adenomyosis, particularly as an adjunct to conventional therapies. This study aimed to assess the efficacy and safety of combining CHM with a levonorgestrel-releasing intrauterine system (LNG-IUS) in the treatment of adenomyosis.</div></div><div><h3>Methods</h3><div>A comprehensive literature search was performed across seven electronic databases from their inception to December 2024. Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) comparing CHM combined with LNG-IUS against LNG-IUS monotherapy were eligible for inclusion. Two reviewers independently screened the records and assessed the methodological certainty. Meta-analysis was employed to quantitively synthesize the effect estimates. To ensure the robustness of the results, subgroup analysis, sensitivity analysis, and publication bias assessment were performed. This study was registered on PROSPERO (CRD42020145842; Date: April 28, 2020) and OSF (DOI: 10.17605/OSF.IO/A2GHY, Date: April 26, 2020).</div></div><div><h3>Results</h3><div>Twenty RCTs involving 2114 women were included. The methodological certainty of most included trials was low or very low. Meta-analysis demonstrated that the adjuvant use of CHM therapy might be superior in decreasing visual analogue scale (VAS) scores (MD -1.44, 95 % CI -1.89 to -0.99, <em>P</em>&lt;0.00001, low-certainty evidence) and the pictorial blood assessment chart (PBAC) (MD -13.00, 95 % CI -18.98 to -7.01, <em>P</em>&lt;0.0001, very low-certainty evidence). In terms of the secondary outcomes, the results indicated that CHM adjuvant therapy significantly reduced the endometrial thickness (MD -2.03, 95 % CI -2.52 to -1.53, <em>P</em> &lt; 0.00001, very low-certainty evidence), the serum CA125 level (MD -7.58, 95 % CI -10.11 to -5.05, <em>P</em> &lt; 0.00001, low-certainty evidence), and the uterine volume (MD -10.23, 95 % CI -15.06 to -5.04, <em>P</em> &lt; 0.0001, low-certainty evidence). Furthermore, the combination group exhibited a lower incidence of adverse events than the LNG-IUS monotherapy group (RR 0.53, 95 % CI 0.45 to 0.63, <em>P</em>&lt;0.00001, low-certainty evidence).</div></div><div><h3>Conclusion</h3><div>CHM combined with LNG-IUS may enhance additional therapeutic outcomes and reduce adverse events in patients with adenomyosis. However, given the methodological limitations and considerable heterogeneity across the included trials, these findings should be interpreted with caution.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":11932,"journal":{"name":"European Journal of Integrative Medicine","volume":"81 ","pages":"Article 102588"},"PeriodicalIF":1.7,"publicationDate":"2025-11-25","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145681590","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Association of Danshen use with all-cause and cardiovascular mortality among patients with advanced chronic kidney disease","authors":"Shih-Jiun Lin ,&nbsp;Cheng-Chi Liu ,&nbsp;David Ming Then Tsai ,&nbsp;Ya-Hsueh Shih ,&nbsp;Chuan-Pin Lee ,&nbsp;Ko-Jung Chen ,&nbsp;Yao-Hsu Yang ,&nbsp;Yung-Chien Hsu ,&nbsp;Chun-Liang Lin","doi":"10.1016/j.eujim.2025.102589","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.eujim.2025.102589","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Introduction</h3><div>Chronic kidney disease (CKD) progression is associated with an increased mortality risk, primarily due to cardiovascular (CV) event, underscoring the need for targeted treatments to reduce CV risk and improve patient outcomes. Danshen, a traditional Chinese medicine known for its CV protective effects, is a potential therapy for improving outcomes in CKD patients. This study aims to evaluate the association between Danshen use and CV mortality, all-cause mortality, and end-stage renal disease (ESRD) risk in patients with advanced CKD.</div></div><div><h3>Methods</h3><div>This retrospective study utilized the Chronic Kidney Disease Health Database, a disease-specific subset of the National Health Insurance Research Database in Taiwan. A total of 38,379 patients with advanced CKD were included between January 1, 2012, and December 31, 2015, with follow up until December 31, 2017. Patients were classified as Danshen users (<em>n</em> = 1818) or non-users (<em>n</em> = 36,561). Outcomes of interest were ESRD, CV mortality and all-cause mortality. Cumulative incidence was evaluated using Kaplan-Meier analysis. Cox proportional hazards models were applied to estimate hazard ratios (HRs), with adjustment for potential confounders. Stabilized inverse probability of treatment weighting – average treatment effect (IPTW-ATE) was applied to balance baseline characteristics between patient groups and to estimate IPTW-adjusted HRs.</div></div><div><h3>Results</h3><div>Danshen users showed a significant reduction in all-cause mortality (IPTW-adjusted HR, 0.80; 95 % confidence interval [CI], 0.71–0.91; <em>P</em> = 0.001) and a trend toward lower CV mortality (IPTW-adjusted HR, 0.82; 95 % CI, 0.68–1.00; <em>P</em> = 0.055), although the latter association was not statistically significant. However, there was a potential increase in ESRD risk among Danshen users (IPTW-adjusted subdistribution HR, 1.15; 95 % CI, 1.03–1.28; <em>P</em> = 0.010).</div></div><div><h3>Conclusion</h3><div>Danshen use in advanced CKD patients was associated with a significant reduction in all-cause mortality and a trend toward lower CV mortality, but a potential increase in ESRD risk. These findings suggest that Danshen may provide CV and survival benefits in this high-risk population, but close monitoring of renal function is warranted.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":11932,"journal":{"name":"European Journal of Integrative Medicine","volume":"81 ","pages":"Article 102589"},"PeriodicalIF":1.7,"publicationDate":"2025-11-25","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145681589","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Safety and effectiveness of ginger for acute respiratory infections: A systematic review of randomized controlled clinical trials","authors":"Camillus Mbaoji ,&nbsp;Martins Emeje ,&nbsp;Munira Abdullahi ,&nbsp;Amarachi Chukwuemeka ,&nbsp;Samuel Itopa ,&nbsp;Ibrahim Bello ,&nbsp;Xiaowen Zhang ,&nbsp;Sadia Wali ,&nbsp;Xiao-Yang Hu (Mio) ,&nbsp;Merlin Willcox","doi":"10.1016/j.eujim.2025.102585","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.eujim.2025.102585","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Introduction</h3><div>The development of antibiotics is one of the greatest breakthroughs in modern medicine. However, antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is exacerbated by excessive use of antibiotics, including in the treatment of upper respiratory tract infections (URTIs) . It is estimated that over 1 million deaths each year are attributable to bacterial AMR, and this could increase to 10 million by 2050.</div><div>The search for novel alternatives to antibiotic therapies focuses on natural compounds from plants like ginger, which is widely used and believed to be effective for treating respiratory tract infections. Constituents of ginger have demonstrated antiviral, antimicrobial and anti-inflammatory properties. The aim of this systematic review is to evaluate the clinical effectiveness and safety of ginger as a single herb in randomized controlled trials (RCTs) for treating acute respiratory infections (ARIs).</div></div><div><h3>Methodology</h3><div>The protocol was registered on PROSPERO (CRD42024562098). We searched six electronic databases - PubMed, EMBASE, Cochrane library, CINAHL, AMED and CNKI from inception to 27th February- 2nd October 2024. Data from this search was exported to Rayyan for screening. We included RCTs of ginger mono-herbal oral therapies in patients with diagnosis or symptoms of ARIs (including COVID-19) and compared with usual care, placebo or other interventions. The Cochrane risk-of-bias tool for randomized trials (RoB-2) was used to assess risk of bias.</div></div><div><h3>Result</h3><div>A total of 10, 281 titles were screened in Rayyan. The screening yielded only one eligible RCT, with 227 adult participants who tested positive for COVID-19, were asymptomatic and quarantined in shelter hospitals in China. Ginger powder (1.5 g twice daily in warm water), in addition to standard care, reduced quarantine duration (time to negative Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) result, without major symptoms) by 2.4 days (95 % CI 1.6 – 3.2), compared to usual care alone. The effects seemed to be greater for participants aged 60 years or older, men, and those with pre-existing medical conditions. No data on adverse events were reported. The study was at high risk of bias due to concerns about randomisation and lack of blinding.</div></div><div><h3>Conclusion</h3><div>More high-quality randomized controlled clinical trials are needed to assess the efficacy of ginger for the treatment of ARIs.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":11932,"journal":{"name":"European Journal of Integrative Medicine","volume":"81 ","pages":"Article 102585"},"PeriodicalIF":1.7,"publicationDate":"2025-11-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145616103","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Effect of emotional freedom techniques on anxiety, surgical fear and birth perception in planned caesareans: A randomised controlled trial","authors":"Esra Karatas Okyay ,&nbsp;Sinem Guven Santur ,&nbsp;Zeliha Özsahin ,&nbsp;Yeşim Aksoy Derya","doi":"10.1016/j.eujim.2025.102584","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.eujim.2025.102584","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Introduction</h3><div>The aim of this study was to determine the effect of emotional freedom techniques (EFT) applied before cesarean section on anxiety, surgical fear and perception of traumatic birth.</div></div><div><h3>Method</h3><div>This randomized controlled trial was conducted with 106 pregnant women (53 EFT, 53 control) at the pregnancy outpatient clinic of a public hospital in eastern Türkiye who were going to give birth by planned cesarean section. Personal Information Form, State Anxiety Inventory (STAI-I), Surgical Fear Scale (SFQ), Traumatic Birth Perception Scale (TBPS) and Subjective Experiences Scale (SUE) were used to obtain the data. Pregnant women in the experimental group received two EFT sessions one week apart, from the researchers. The control group did not receive any intervention. Descriptive statistics, Pearson chi-square test, t-test for dependent and independent groups, ANCOVA and repeated measures analysis of variance were used to analyze the data.</div></div><div><h3>Results</h3><div>It was determined that the mean scores of the pregnant women in the experimental and control groups who would give birth by planned cesarean section were similar in the pretest phase (p &gt; 0.05). After the EFT sessions applied to the pregnant women in the experimental group, it was found that the mean total scores of STAI-I, SFQ, and TBPS were statistically significantly lower and the mean SUE score was higher than the control group (p &lt; 0.05).</div></div><div><h3>Conclusion</h3><div>It was determined that EFT applied to pregnant women who will give birth by planned cesarean section decreased state anxiety, surgical fear and traumatic birth perception.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":11932,"journal":{"name":"European Journal of Integrative Medicine","volume":"81 ","pages":"Article 102584"},"PeriodicalIF":1.7,"publicationDate":"2025-11-12","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145681591","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"East Asian herbal medicine as an add-on to antipsychotics in schizophrenia spectrum disorders accompanied by agitation: a systematic review and meta-analysis","authors":"Chan-Young Kwon ,&nbsp;Ji-Won Kim ,&nbsp;Ji-Won Oh ,&nbsp;Hye-Li Jeon ,&nbsp;Min-Jae Kim ,&nbsp;Kyoung-Eun Lee ,&nbsp;Boram Lee ,&nbsp;Pyung-Wha Kim ,&nbsp;Yujin Choi","doi":"10.1016/j.eujim.2025.102583","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.eujim.2025.102583","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Introduction</h3><div>Agitation is a frequent and disrupting symptom of schizophrenia spectrum disorders (SSDs) that can be difficult to manage with antipsychotic treatment alone. East Asian herbal medicine has been explored as a complementary therapy, but its effectiveness remains unclear. This review aimed to evaluate the effectiveness and safety of East Asian herbal medicine as an add-on therapy to antipsychotics compared to antipsychotics alone in the management of agitation in patients with SSDs.</div></div><div><h3>Methods</h3><div>Ten sources including eight databases (PubMed, EMBASE, CENTRAL, CNKI, CiNii, KISS, ScienceON, OASIS) and two additional sources (WHO ICTRP, JSOM website) were searched to January 2025. Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) comparing East Asian herbal medicine added to antipsychotics with antipsychotics alone in patients with SSDs accompanied by agitation were included. The primary outcome was the agitation symptoms measured using standardized scales (CMAI, PANSS-EC, or BPRS-EC), where lower scores indicate reduced agitation. Random-effects meta-analyses were performed. Risk of bias was evaluated using Cochrane RoB 2. The certainty of evidence for each outcome was assessed using the GRADE approach.</div></div><div><h3>Results</h3><div>Seven RCTs (n = 639) were included. Meta-analysis showed that East Asian herbal medicine added to antipsychotics significantly improved agitation symptoms (SMD −0.88 [95 % CI −1.26, −0.49]; I²=74 %), reduced adverse events (RR 0.44 [95 % CI 0.34, 0.57]; I²=0 %), and improved overall schizophrenia symptoms (SMD −1.99 [95 % CI −3.11, −0.86]; I²=68 %). Risk of bias was assessed as “some concerns” in all studies, mainly because of absence of allocation concealment reporting, placebo controls, and pre-registered protocols. Certainty of evidence was rated as moderate for agitation (downgraded for risk of bias) and low for secondary outcomes (downgraded for risk of bias and imprecision).</div></div><div><h3>Conclusions</h3><div>East Asian herbal medicine may improve agitation and reduce adverse events in SSDs when combined with antipsychotics. Large effect sizes warrant caution regarding potential small-study effects and methodological limitations. Future research should use rigorous double-blind placebo-controlled designs, standardized formulations, extended follow-ups, and diverse populations.</div></div><div><h3>Registration</h3><div>Protocol of this review was registered via PROSPERO (CRD42025643106)</div></div><div><h3>Funding</h3><div>Ministry of Health &amp; Welfare, Republic of Korea [grant number RS-2024-00442840]</div></div>","PeriodicalId":11932,"journal":{"name":"European Journal of Integrative Medicine","volume":"81 ","pages":"Article 102583"},"PeriodicalIF":1.7,"publicationDate":"2025-11-12","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145536861","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Modified Saengmaeksan (Shengmai-san) for arterial stiffness in middle-aged women: A feasibility study","authors":"Nahyun Cho ,&nbsp;Jungah Uhm ,&nbsp;Changsop Yang ,&nbsp;Hiroshi Miyashita ,&nbsp;Hobin Moon ,&nbsp;Jungtae Leem","doi":"10.1016/j.eujim.2025.102581","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.eujim.2025.102581","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Introduction</h3><div>Aging causes significant vascular alterations, increasing susceptibility to arterial stiffness and cardiovascular diseases. Interest in complementary and alternative medicines, such as modified Saengmaeksan (mSMS), a traditional East Asian herbal formulation, has intensified given its benefits in mitigating arterial stiffness. However, robust clinical evidence supporting it's efficacy remains limited. This feasibility study aimed to explore the applicability, safety, and potential short-term effects of mSMS on pulse wave indices associated with arterial stiffness in a real-world clinical setting.</div></div><div><h3>Methods</h3><div>This prospective single-arm feasibility study enrolled 30 patients aged 19–75 years who underwent mSMS for 4 weeks. The second-derivative photoplethysmography (SDPTG), heart rate variability, augmentation index, and blood pressure-related indices were measured at baseline, after 2 weeks, and after 4 weeks of treatment. The body mass index, Measure Yourself Medical Outcome Profile, and Patient Global Impression of Change scores were also obtained. Blood tests were conducted to assess the safety profile of mSMS.</div></div><div><h3>Results</h3><div>High adherence (mean intake of 94.4 %) and full data completeness were achieved. After 4 weeks of mSMS treatment, exploratory analyses showed significant improvements in SDPTG vascular age (mean change: −15.90 years, <em>p</em> &lt; 0.001) and augmentation index (<em>p</em> &lt; 0.01), with no serious adverse events. Patient-reported outcomes also showed improvement. The study suggests that mSMS may have the potential to improve vascular function and could offer benefits in middle-aged women, potentially independent of menopausal status.</div></div><div><h3>Conclusion</h3><div>mSMS administration was feasible and well-tolerated in middle-aged women in a clinical setting. However, due to the single-arm design and small sample size, definitive conclusions cannot be drawn. These results support the need for larger, controlled clinical trials to further evaluate the clinical efficacy and target population of mSMS in preventing cardiovascular problems.</div></div><div><h3>Registration</h3><div>Public Institutional Review Board Designated by the Ministry of Health and Welfare (authorization number: P01–201,711–21–020). Research Information Service of South Korea (KCT0002648).</div></div><div><h3>Funding</h3><div>the National Development Institute of Korean Medicine, funded by the Ministry of Health and Welfare, Republic of Korea [grant number HI16C0275]; the National Research Foundation of Korea, funded by the Korea government [grant number RS-2022-NR072366]; the Korea Health Technology Project through the Korea Health Industry Development Institute, funded by the Ministry of Health and Welfare, Republic of Korea [grant numbers RS-2023-KH139333, RS-2023-KH139598].</div></div>","PeriodicalId":11932,"journal":{"name":"European Journal of Integrative Medicine","volume":"81 ","pages":"Article 102581"},"PeriodicalIF":1.7,"publicationDate":"2025-11-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145536860","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Evidence-based ranking of herbal medicines for hypertension management: A systematic review and network meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials","authors":"Alireza Malektojari ,&nbsp;Parsa Ghaedzade Khamiri ,&nbsp;Fatemeh Bagheri ,&nbsp;Najmeh Baniasadi ,&nbsp;Laya Khajooei ,&nbsp;Mahdieh Roohi ,&nbsp;Mojgan Bolandparva ,&nbsp;Atena Ghorbani ,&nbsp;Mohammad Mehdi Noormohammadi ,&nbsp;Nazanin Hooshyari ,&nbsp;Ani Orchanian-Cheff ,&nbsp;Fateme Afra ,&nbsp;Raziyeh Mirzadeh ,&nbsp;Zahra Mafi ,&nbsp;Raha Paozki ,&nbsp;Abbas Dehghan ,&nbsp;Sara G. Khosrowshahi","doi":"10.1016/j.eujim.2025.102582","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.eujim.2025.102582","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Introduction</h3><div>Hypertension affects over 116 million adults in the United States and &gt;1 billion globally, substantially contributing to cardiovascular morbidity. Herbal therapies have emerged as potential complementary treatments for blood pressure management. To the best of our knowledge, this study is the first systematic review with network meta-analysis (NMA) aimed at ranking the most effective herbal therapies for lowering blood pressure.</div></div><div><h3>Methods</h3><div>We systematically searched MEDLINE, Embase, Cochrane CENTRAL, and Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews (CDSR), selecting randomized controlled trials (RCTs) enrolling hypertensive and prehypertensive adults that compare herbal medicine interventions to placebo, usual care, or against each other. We used the Cochrane RoB 2 tool to assess the risk of bias. We performed frequentist random-effects network meta-analyses and summarized effects as mean differences (MD) with 95 % confidence intervals (CI). We evaluated the certainty of evidence using the Grading of Recommendations, Assessment, Development, and Evaluations (GRADE) approach.</div></div><div><h3>Results</h3><div>A total of 47 RCTs involving 3,559 patients met prespecified eligibility criteria. Our NMA indicates that Celery (Apium graveolens) reduces systolic blood pressure (SBP) by (MD -10.9 [95 % CI -17.6 to -4.3], p-value=0.001) with high certainty of evidence. Caucasian whortleberry (MD -16.2 [95 % CI -22.9 to -9.5], p-value&lt;0.0001), Roselle (MD -7.7 [95 % CI -11.9 to -3.5], p-value=0.0003), and Garlic (MD -6.0 [95 % CI -8.8 to -3.2], p-value&lt;0.0001) probably reduce SBP with moderate certainty. No serious adverse events were reported.</div></div><div><h3>Conclusion</h3><div>There is moderate to high certainty that Celery and Caucasian whortleberry were the most effective treatments for reducing blood pressure, among included herbal medicines, in hypertensive and pre-hypertensive patients. Additional long-term, large-sample RCTs are warranted to refine dosing, safety, and sustained effects. Clinicians should interpret results cautiously, given heterogeneity and limited direct evidence for some herbs.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":11932,"journal":{"name":"European Journal of Integrative Medicine","volume":"81 ","pages":"Article 102582"},"PeriodicalIF":1.7,"publicationDate":"2025-11-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145537048","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}