Medical Acupuncture最新文献

Background: Combinations of front-mu and back-shu points are widely used to treat internal organ issues in both clinical practice and scientific research. We investigated the selection patterns of front-mu and back-shu points used in clinical trials. We also conducted a network analysis to identify the most common combinations of these acupoints.

Methods: Based on 421 clinical studies, the frequencies of the front-mu and back-shu points were extracted from the Acusynth database. A network analysis was performed to determine the eigenvector centrality, closeness centrality, and betweenness centrality of these acupoint combinations.

Results: Front-mu points were more frequently used with Fu (hollow) organs, whereas back-shu points were more frequently used with Zang (solid) organs. Network analysis revealed that both front-mu and back-shu points were used together and in combination with major acupoints.

Conclusions: We demonstrated the acupoint selection patterns and combinations of front-mu and back-shu points using data mining. These results will aid clinicians in comprehending clinical database-driven front-mu and back-shu point selection patterns.

Introduction: Integrating traditional Chinese medicine with Western medicine has been extensively studied in managing respiratory disease. Therefore, in this study, we aimed to examine interferon point alteration (IPA) and its association with disease severity in patients with COVID-19.

Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted on patients hospitalized due to COVID-19 with lung involvement. The control group consisted of patients hospitalized with a diagnosis other than COVID-19. The prevalence of IPA was compared between patients with and without COVID-19. Clinical and laboratory findings were compared in patients with and without IPA.

Results: A total of 126 participants, with a mean (SD) age of 57.2 (16.4) years, were included in this study. 54.8% of participants were men. There was a significant difference between patients with and without COVID-19 regarding the frequency of IPA (p = 0.045). No significant differences were observed between variables in patients with and without IPA (p ≥ 0.05). The only variable that could significantly predict the IPA in COVID-19 patients was the severity score of lung involvement in HRCT (OR: 5.32, 95% CI: 1.08-26.05, p = 0.039). IPA showed a sensitivity and specificity of 80.9% and 34.9% in identifying COVID-19 patients, respectively.

Conclusion: Our study found a significant association between IPAs and the severity of lung involvement in hospitalized COVID-19 patients and a significant association of COVID-19 with IPAs.

Purpose: Lay midwives attend most births at home in Guatemala facing many challenges with limited resources. Current research demonstrates that acupressure can reduce preterm contractions and encourage post-term labor. Sharing acupressure techniques with lay midwives could improve birth outcomes in Guatemala. The purpose of this study was to deliver an educational session for lay midwives to assess their learning and satisfaction with acupressure, and its feasibility and usefulness in their work.

Methods: Two acupressure protocols were designed based on the clinical expertise of University of Utah College of Nursing faculty and extant literature. Demographic data and a pretest were conducted, followed by a focus group and various educational activities. A post-test was administered, and participants were given Spanish-language, laminated Reminder Cards with acupressure point illustrations to reinforce knowledge retention as the group had a low literacy rate. This study was IRB approved.

Results: Eleven lay midwives participated (all female, average age 52 with an average of 21 years of lay midwifery experience). Lay midwives lacked knowledge about acupressure before the educational session and were eager to learn. Afterward, most participants recalled six points to discourage preterm labor and six points to encourage post-term labor on a post-test, and expressed an intent to use their new acupressure knowledge with patients.

Discussion: This sample of lay midwives eagerly embraced new acupressure information and demonstrated increased knowledge after this educational intervention. Next steps would be to continue to expand lay midwife knowledge and skills in response to their request for acupressure interventions for retained placenta.

Objective: Stiff person syndrome (SPS) is a rare neurological disorder. Treatments are limited, and non-pharmacologic therapies are recommended based on symptomatology. A G2P2002 post-menopausal 60-year-old female with hypertension, obesity, and type II diabetes, and SPS secondary to a paraneoplastic process cause by endometrioid ovarian adenocarcinoma who presented to acupuncture clinic seeking treatment for SPS and its sequela. Her main complaints upon presentation included muscles spasticity causing low back pain, hip flexor pain, insomnia and chemotherapy induced peripheral neuropathy. Her mood and quality of life were also noted to be poor at presentation.

Materials and methods: A case report of implementation and customization of acupuncture treatment protocol for the sequelae of SPS including painful spasticity, insomnia, and reduced quality of life is discussed. Outcomes included measures of stiffness (degree of stiffness, distribution of stiffness, heightened sensitivity score) at each visit and health-related quality of life 14 item index at baseline. These outcomes were measured at the initiation of the acupuncture intervention (baseline) and after 9 weeks of weekly acupuncture treatments. These treatments included body acupuncture, electro acupuncture and auricular acupuncture. Acupuncture was performed in addition to her ongoing IVIG therapy.

Results: Forward bending increased with maximal benefit observed by treatment 3. Lateral bending showed significant improvement with maximal effect by treatment 4. Timed activity testing (walk and stair climb) initially did not improve but showed a significant and sustained improvement following acupuncture protocol change following week 5. The self-rated quality of life outcome measure of overall health was unchanged ("good" at baseline and at follow-up), but all other quality of life outcome measures showed improvements.

Conclusions: SPS is a rare disorder causing substantial impairment for patients affected. The evidence supporting the use of acupuncture specifically for SPS is at most limited, however, the evidence supports the use of acupuncture for many of the symptoms experienced by those with SPS. This case illustrates how acupuncture can be considered as an adjunct therapy to improve the quality of life and function of these patients. More studies are needed to further investigate and optimize acupuncture treatment protocols for this rare disease.

Background: Chronic nonspecific low back pain (cNLBP) can be effectively treated by electroacupuncture (EA) at traditional acupoints (TAPs) and myofascial trigger points (MTrPs). However, the optimal type and frequency of stimulation (alternated frequency [AF] and high frequency [HF]) remain unclear. This study aimed to explore this.

Methods: A double-blinded randomized controlled trial was conducted with four treatment groups: EA using AF at MTrPs (MTP-AF group), HF at MTrPs (MTP-HF group), AF at TAPs (TAP-AF group), and HF at TAPs (TAP-HF), each with 40 middle-aged cNLBP patients. The AF was 2/100 Hz and HF was 100 Hz. Pain-visual analog scale (pain-VAS), paracetamol requirement, Oswestry disability index (ODI) score, global improvement, and adverse effects (AEs) were monitored.

Results: After 4 weeks, groups of EA targeting MTrPs and TAPs with the same frequency showed no significant differences. Groups using AF demonstrated significantly superior pain-VAS and ODI percentage score reductions compared with HF groups, extending at least 4 weeks post-EA. All groups showed consistent results in paracetamol use, global improvement, and safety. Subgroup analysis indicated that EA with AF at MTrPs provided better results in patients aged ≥60-65 years.

Conclusions: EA at MTrPs and TAPs demonstrated similar effects on cNLBP. However, an AF proves more effective than an HF, potentially maintaining this trend in the short term. Older patients may respond better to EA at MTrPs with AF. Future studies may explore combined MTrPs and TAPs for cNBLP treatment with a broader age range and more diverse demographic groups.