The American journal of Chinese medicine
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Meta Analysis
Gut Microbiota Regulation by Acupuncture and Moxibustion: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.
There have been numerous studies investigating the impact of acupuncture and/or moxibustion on the gut microbiota, but the results have been inconclusive. Therefore, we conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis that included both preclinical and clinical studies to assess the current evidence regarding the effects of acupuncture on gut microbiota changes. We collected relevant studies from EMBASE and PubMed, collected outcomes including diversity and relative abundance measures of the gut microbiome, and the summarized effect estimates were calculated using the ratio of means (ROM) with 95% confidence intervals. ⋯ Additionally, the pooled results showed an increase in the Firmicutes and a decrease in the Bacteroidetes in the treatment groups, along with increases in the Lactobacillus and Ruminococcus genera. These findings suggest acupuncture treatment can target the modification of specific phyla and genera of gut microbiota. However, it is important to note that the effects of acupuncture on the gut microbiome are heterogeneous across studies, particularly in different disease models.
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Meta Analysis
The Effectiveness of Acupuncture for Low Back Pain: An Umbrella Review and Meta-Analysis.
Recommendations on the use of acupuncture in managing low back pain (LBP) vary across different guidelines. The methodological quality of existing systematic reviews and meta-analyses on this topic also demonstrates considerable diversity, potentially leading to biased conclusions. Therefore, we comprehensively searched PubMed, EMBASE, Web of Science, Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, and Chinese National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI) databases and conducted an umbrella review. ⋯ Evidence supporting the enhancement of quality of life by acupuncture is limited. The leave-one-out analysis corroborated the robustness of the meta-analysis, further confirming the credibility of the findings. This umbrella review indicated that the most significant advantage of acupuncture for LBP is its capacity to reduce pain.
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Parkinson's disease (PD) is a progressive neurodegenerative disorder without a definitive cure. Oriental exercises (OEs) have emerged as a complementary and alternative therapy for PD, but their efficacy in ameliorating non-motor symptoms (NMS) and quality of life (QOL) remains uncertain. This systematic review and meta-analysis actively investigated the efficacy of OEs in addressing NMS and enhancing QOL and sought to offer recommendations for optimal OE regimens for PD patients. ⋯ Specifically, significant improvements were observed in several outcome measures: Parkinson's Disease Questionnaire (PDQ) [MD: [Formula: see text]3.67, 95% CI: [Formula: see text]5.72-[Formula: see text]1.63, [Formula: see text], [Formula: see text]%], Parkinson's Disease Non-Motor Symptom Questionnaire (NMSQ) [MD: [Formula: see text]2.34, 95% CI: [Formula: see text]4.67-[Formula: see text]0.01, [Formula: see text], [Formula: see text]%], Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) [MD: 1.75, 95% CI: 1.46-2.03, [Formula: see text], [Formula: see text]%], Stroop Color and Word Test (SCWT) [MD: 0.87, 95% CI: 0.49-1.24, [Formula: see text], [Formula: see text]%], Frontal Assessment Battery (FAB) [MD: 1.49, 95% CI: 1.16-1.81, [Formula: see text], [Formula: see text]%], Hamilton Depression Scale (HAMD) [MD: [Formula: see text]4.27, 95% CI: [Formula: see text]6.85-[Formula: see text]1.69, [Formula: see text], [Formula: see text]%], Hamilton Anxiety Scale (HAMA) [MD: [Formula: see text]0.24, 95% CI: [Formula: see text]0.32-[Formula: see text]0.16, [Formula: see text], [Formula: see text]%], and the Symptom Checklist-90 (SCL-90) [MD: [Formula: see text]0.37, 95% CI: [Formula: see text]0.48-[Formula: see text]0.25, [Formula: see text], [Formula: see text]%]. Our findings provide compelling evidence for the potential benefits of OEs in managing NMS and improving QOL in PD patients. To optimize outcomes, we recommend customizing OE regimens based on individual clinical phenotypes, and to validate these results we emphasize the need for rigorous, large-scale studies.
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Acupuncture has been used as a therapeutic intervention for the treatment of numerous diseases and symptoms for thousands of years, and low back pain has been studied and treated the most in acupuncture clinics. Traditional theory strongly suggests that the selection of acupoints will influence their clinical effects and combinations (e.g., the clinical effects of a particular acupoint or combination on reducing pain), but this idea was not considered in earlier systematic reviews and meta-analyses. We performed a systematic review, meta-analysis, and network analysis to evaluate the magnitude of the effects of acupoints used to treat low back pain in randomized controlled clinical trials. ⋯ Further, the combinations of BL23-BL40, BL23-B25, and BL23-BL60 were the most frequently prescribed, while BL23-GV3, BL40-GV4, and BL23-BL25 showed the largest average effect size. By calculating clinical outcomes based on average effect sizes, we found that the most popular acupoints might not always be associated with the best results. Although a more thorough investigation is necessary to determine the clinical effects of each acupoint and combination on patients, we suggest that our approach may offer a fresh perspective that will be useful for future research.
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Meta Analysis
Chinese Herbal Medicine, Alternative or Complementary, for Endometriosis-Associated Pain: A Meta-Analysis.
Current medical treatments for endometriosis-associated pain (EAP) have limitations, including symptom recurrence and hormonal side effects. For this reason, it is important to elucidate any alternative or complementary treatments available, while Chinese herbal medicine (CHM) shows potential to be this treatment. This study aims to provide evidence for the efficacy and safety of CHM for EAP. ⋯ Compared with conventional therapy, a significant difference was found in the levels of pelvic pain with a lower rate of hot flush and irregular vaginal bleeding at the end of treatment for 3 months, but not after treatment. Comparing combined treatment with CHM and conventional therapy with conventional therapy alone, significant decreases were found in dysmenorrhea, dyspareunia, and pelvic pain after a 3-month treatment cycle, and in dysmenorrhea after a 4-month treatment cycle with a lower hot flash rate. In conclusion, CHM, used alone or in combination with conventional therapies, appears to have benefits in relieving EAP with fewer side effects than traditional treatment.