Clinical effect of acupoint application with turmeric blistering moxibustion plaster on post-stroke hemiplegic shoulder pain. / 姜黄天灸膏穴位贴敷治疗脑卒中偏瘫肩痛临床疗效观察.

OBJECTIVES: To observe the effects of acupoint application with turmeric blistering moxibustion plaster on pain, shoulder range of motion (ROM) and upper limb motor function in the patients with post-stroke hemiplegic shoulder pain (PSHSP). METHODS: Eighty-two patients with PSHSP were randomly divided into an observation group (41 cases, 1 case was eliminated, 4 cases dropped out) and a control group (41 cases, 2 cases were eliminated and 2 cases dropped out). The routine treatment, nursing care and rehabilitation training were performed in the control group. On the basis of the intervention as the control group, in the observation group, the turmeric blistering moxibustion plaster was applied to bilateral ashi points, Jianyu (LI 15), Jianliao (TE 14), Binao (LI 14), Shousanli (LI 10) and Hegu (LI 4), once a day, remained for 6 hours each time. This moxibustion therapy was operated 5 times weekly, one course of treatment consisted of 2 weeks and 2 courses were required. Separately, before treatment and after 2 and 4 weeks of treatment, the score of visual analogue scale (VAS), shoulder ROM and the score of upper limbs in Fugl-Meyer assessment (U-FMA) were observed in the two groups. RESULTS: VAS scores were lower (P<0.05), ROM in shoulder flexion, abduction, internal rotation and external rotation was larger (P<0.05), and U-FMA scores were higher (P<0.05) after 2 and 4 weeks of treatment when compared with those before treatment in the two groups. After 4 weeks of treatment, VAS score decreased (P<0.05), and ROM in shoulder flexion, abduction, internal rotation, external rotation and U-FMA score increased (P<0.05) in comparison with those after 2 weeks of treatment in either group. In the observation group, VAS scores were dropped (P<0.05) after 2 and 4 weeks of treatment respectively, and ROM of shoulder flexion and abduction enlarged after 2 weeks of treatment (P<0.05) when compared with those in the control group. After 4 weeks of treatment, ROM in shoulder flexion, abduction, internal rotation and external rotation in the observation group was larger (P<0.05) and U-FMA score was higher (P<0.05) than those in the control group. CONCLUSIONS: Acupoint application with turmeric blistering moxibustion plaster may effectively reduce the degree of shoulder pain and improve the shoulder range of motion and the upper limb motor function in the patients with post-stroke hemiplegic shoulder pain.

Axial length shortening in myopic children with Stickler syndrome after repeated low-level red-light therapy.

AIM: To report the myopia-controlling effect of repeated low-level red-light (RLRL) therapy in patients with Stickler syndrome (STL), an inherited collagenic disease typically presenting with early onset myopia. METHODS: Three STL children, aged 3, 7, and 11y, received RLRL therapy throughout the follow-up period of 17, 3, and 6mo, respectively after exclusion of fundus anomalies. Data on best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA), intraocular pressure, cycloplegic subjective refraction, ocular biometrics, scanning laser ophthalmoscope, optical coherence tomography, genetic testing, systemic disease history, and family history were recorded. RESULTS: At the initiation of the RLRL therapy, the spherical equivalent (SE) of 6 eyes from 3 patients ranged from -3.75 to -20.38 D, axial length (AL) were from 23.88 to 30.68 mm, and BCVA were from 0.4 to 1.0 (decimal notation). Myopia progression of all six eyes slowed down after RLRL therapy. AL in five out of the six eyes shortened -0.07 to -0.63 mm. No side effects were observed. CONCLUSION: Three cases of STL whose progression of myopic shift and AL elongation are successfully reduced and even reversed after RLRL therapy.

[Quality evaluation of Curcumae Radix from different origins based on UPLC characteristic chromatogram, multicomponent content, and chemometrics].

In this study, UPLC was used to establish the characteristic chromatograms of Curcumae Radix from different origins(LSYJ, WYJ, HSYJ, and GYJ) and the content determination method of 11 chemical components. The evaluation of characteristic chromatogram similarity, cluster analysis(CA), principal component analysis(PCA), and orthogonal partial least square discriminant analysis(OPLS-DA) were combined to evaluate the quality of Curcumae Radix from four origins. LSYJ, WYJ, HSYJ, and GYJ showed 15, 17, 15, and 10 characteristic peaks, respectively, and 8 of the peaks were identified. The characteristic chromatograms of Curcumae Radix samples(except for GYJ07) from the same origin showed the similarity greater than 0.854. The 11 chemical components had different content among the samples from four origins. Curcumenol, furanodienone, and isocurcumenol were rich in LSYJ; hydroxyisogermafurenolide, curdione, and furanodiene had high content in WYJ; gemacrone, ß-elemene, bisdemethoxycurcumin, demethoxycurcumin, and curcumin were rich in HSYJ; all the components had low content in GYJ. The chemometric analysis showed that CA, PCA, and OPLS-DA could accurately classify the four origins of Curcumae Radix into four categories, and five different quality markers, namely furanodienone, curcumenol, curdione, hydroxyisogermafurenolide, and furanodiene, were screened out by OPLS-DA. UPLC in combination with multicomponent content determination is simple, rapid, reproducible, and specific, which can provide reference for the quality control and identification of Curcumae Radix from four origins.

Characteristics of neonicotinoid and metabolite residues in Taiwanese tea leaves.

BACKGROUND: Neonicotinoids are widely used insecticides, and tea is a popular non-alcoholic beverage in Taiwan. However, the levels of neonicotinoids in Taiwanese tea leaves remain unclear. Therefore, this study aims to understand the characteristics of neonicotinoid and metabolite residues in Taiwanese tea leaves. METHODS: In this study, 12 tea leaf samples were collected in Taiwan and extracted by solid-phase extraction before analysis by liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry. In addition, the levels of neonicotinoids were compared with the maximum residue level standards from other countries. RESULTS: In Taiwanese tea leaves, five neonicotinoids and seven metabolites were detected. Different tea species influenced the levels of neonicotinoids and their metabolites in the present study. Moreover, the levels of neonicotinoids and their metabolites in partially fermented leaves were higher than in completely fermented leaves. In Jin-Xuan tea, the levels of neonicotinoids and their metabolites in most winter-harvested teas were lower than in summer-harvested teas. CONCLUSION: The residue levels of neonicotinoids and their metabolites were detectable in Taiwanese tea leaves. Moreover, different tea species, manufacturing processes, and harvest seasons might influence the levels of these pesticides. Therefore, the government should monitor the use of neonicotinoids. © 2021 Society of Chemical Industry.

[Study on quality identification of Curcumae Rhizoma from different origins based on quantitative analysis of appearance color and content of main components].

L~*, a~* and b~* values of prepared slices of Curcumae Rhizoma were measured by spectrophotometer. SPSS 21.0 was used for discriminant analysis to establish the color range and mathematical prediction model of prepared slices of Curcumae Rhizoma. The values of L~*, a~* and b~* of kwangsiensis ranged from 58.09-62.40, 4.53-5.66 and 23.61-24.29, while the values of L~*, a~* and b~* of phaeocaulis were between 64.02-70.71,-0.89-4.13 and 44.59-54.52, respectively. The values of L~*, a~* and b~* of wenyujin were 68.55-70.99,-0.11-1.47 and 28.26-32.19, respectively. The mathematical prediction model was proved to be able to realize 100% identification of Curcumae Rhizome of different origins through original and cross validation and external samples validation. A dual wavelength HPLC was established; the contents of 9 sesquiterpenoids and 3 Curcumae Rhizomes were determined simultaneously; and the contents of Curcumae Rhizome of different origins were determined. The results showed that kwangsiensis had higher contents of neocurdione, ß-elemene and isocurcumaenol, phaeocaulis curcumin, furadienone, demethoxycurcumin and curcumin; and wenyujin mainly contained curdione, furadienes and guimarone. Pearson correlation analysis on L~*, a~*, b~* value and content of 12 components showed that curcumin, furadienone, demethoxycurcumin and curcumin had a significant positive correlation with b~* value(P<0.01). There was a significant negative correlation between neocurdione, ß-elemene and isocurcumaenol and L~* value(P<0.01). Curdione, furadienes and guimarone were significantly correlated with L~* value(P<0.01),indicating that the appearance co-lor of Curcumae Rhizoma could reflect the change of the content of the internal components. This study provided reference for the rapid recognition of Curcumae Rhizoma and the establishment of quality evaluation system.