Complementary and alternative medicine on cognitive defects and neuroinflammation after sepsis.

Sepsis-associated encephalopathy (SAE) is a common manifestation of sepsis, ranging from mild confusion and delirium to severe cognitive impairment and deep coma. SAE is associated with higher mortality and long-term outcomes, particularly substantial declines in cognitive function. The mechanisms of SAE probably include neuroinflammation that is mediated by systemic inflammation and ischemic lesions in the brain, a disrupted blood-brain barrier, oxidative stress, neurotransmitter dysfunction, and severe microglial activation. Increasing evidence suggests that complementary and alternative medicine, especially Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), is favorable in alleviating cognitive decline after sepsis. Here, we summarized the studies of traditional herbal remedies, TCM formulas and acupuncture therapy in animal models of neurological dysfunctions after sepsis in recent decades and reviewed their potential mechanisms.

Randomized controlled study of a diagnosis and treatment plan for moderate coronavirus disease 2019 that integrates Traditional Chinese and Western Medicine.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the clinical efficacy and safety of a diagnosis and treatment plan for moderate coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) that integrates traditional Chinese (TCM) and western medicine. METHODS: One hundred twenty patients with moderate COVID-19 were randomized 1∶2 to the control group ( = 40) and experimental group ( = 80). Both groups received conventional western medicine treatment, and the experimental group also received TCM decoction. Over a 2-week period from diagnosis, we observed the time to clinical recovery (TTCR), rate of improvement on lung computed tomography (CT) imaging, time to defervescence, cough remission time, hospital discharge rate, average hospitalization stay, modified Medical Research Council (mMRC) scale score, clinical cure rate, laboratory findings, incidence of progression to severe or critical disease, and adverse events. RESULTS: Among 120 enrolled patients, 108 completed the study. The baseline data did not differ between the experimental and control groups (all > 0.05). After treatment, the TTCR, rate of lung CT imaging improvement, time to defervescence, cough remission time, hospital discharge rate, average hospitalization stay (among discharged patients), mMRC scale score, clinical cure rate, and rates of normal values for laboratory findings were better in the experimental group than in the control group ( < 0.05 or < 0.01). The incidence of progression to severe or critical disease and the incidence of adverse events did not differ between the two groups ( > 0.05). CONCLUSION: The diagnosis and treatment plan integrating Chinese and western medicine showed improved clinical efficacy compared with western medicine alone for patients with moderate COVID-19 and is worthy of clinical promotion and application.