Effect of Acupoint Catgut Embedding for Middle-Aged Obesity: A Multicentre, Randomised, Sham-Controlled Trial.

Objectives: This study aimed to examine the efficacy and safety of acupoint catgut embedding (ACE) for obesity over a 16-week treatment period using sham stimulation as the control. Methods: A multicenter, randomised, parallel, sham-controlled trial was conducted from February 10, 2017, to May 15, 2018. Men with waistlines ≥85 cm and women with ≥80 cm at three sites were randomised to receive eight sessions (over 16 weeks) of ACE (n = 108) or sham ACE (n = 108) with skin penetration at sham acupoints. The catgut was embedded once every two weeks using two alternating sets of acupoints. The follow-up lasted for an additional 24 weeks. The primary outcome was the percentage waistline reduction from baseline to week 16. Results: We included 216 individuals in the intention-to-treat analysis. At 16 weeks, the rate of waistline reduction was 8.80% (95% confidence interval (CI), 7.93% to 9.66%) in the ACE group and 4.09% (95% CI, 3.18% to 5.00%) in the sham control group, with a between-group difference of 4.71% (95% CI, 3.47% to 5.95%; P < 0.0001). This difference persisted throughout the entire follow-up period (between-group difference after 24-week additional weeks, 4.94% (95% CI, 3.58% to 6.30%); P < 0.001). The subgroup analyses of waistline by sex (male/female) revealed treatment effects of 1.93 (95% CI, -0.37 to 4.23, P = 0.1) in the male group and 3.19 (95% CI, 1.99 to 4.39, P < 0.001) in the female group. The adverse event analysis suggested that ACE and laboratory tests confirmed the safety of ACE. Discussion. ACE for 16 weeks could decrease the waistline and weight and was safe for the treatment of obesity. Further research is needed to evaluate the long-term efficacy and sex differences. This trial is registered with NCT02936973.

Clinical effect of catgut implantation at acupoints for the treatment of simple obesity: A multicentre randomized controlled trial.

BACKGROUND: Catgut implantation at acupoints (CIA) is a subtype of acupuncture that has been widely used to treat simple obesity, but evidence for its effectiveness remains scarce. The aim of this study is to evaluate the efficacy and safety of treating simple obesity with CIA. OBJECTIVE: This clinical trial aims to evaluate the effectiveness and safety of CIA used for treatment of simple obesity. METHODS: This is a multicentre, randomized, parallel, sham-controlled clinical trial. A total of 216 patients with simple obesity will be recruited. They will be randomly assigned in a 1:1 ratio to either the CIA group or the sham control group. All treatments will be given once every 2 weeks. The primary outcome measure is the rate of waistline reduction. Secondary outcome measures are the rates of reduction of body measurements, including weight, body mass index (BMI), hipline, waist-hip-ratio (WHR) and body fat percentage (BFP), the changes in scores on scales, including the Impact of Weight on Quality of Life Questionnaire (IWQOL-Lite), Short Form 36 (SF-36), the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HAD) and the Self-Esteem Scale (SES), Outcomes will be evaluated at baseline and at weeks 4, 8, 12, 16, 28, and 40, respectively. All adverse events that occur during this study will be recorded. If any participant withdraws from the trial, an intention-to-treat analysis (ITT) will be performed. CONCLUSION: This is a randomized, sham-controlled trial of CIA treatment for simple obesity. The results of this trial will provide more evidence on whether CIA is efficacious and safe for treating obesity. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT02936973. Registered on October 18, 2016.

[Regularity of Acupoint Selection for Simple Obesity Treated by Acupoint Catgut Embedding Based on Complex Network Technology].

OBJECTIVE: To analyze the core acupoints and acupoint combinations of catgut embedding for simple obesity based on the complex network technology. METHODS: Articles about acupoint catgut embedding for simple obesity were collec-ted from databases of PubMed, CNKI, Wanfang and VIP from 1980 to 2016 by using keywords "simple obesity" "obesity" "acupoint embedding" "acupuncture" and "traditional Chinese medicine"， followed by constructing a database of acupoint prescription. Acupoint node (one node means an acupoint) weighted complex network was constructed by using complex network technique, followed by conducting centrality analysis and clustering analysis about the nodes using Matlab 2014, a software for revealing the core acupoint node and compatibility relations. At last, theresults (complex network diagram) were displayed using software Gephi 0.9.1. RESULTS: A total of 238 articles (all in Chinese) including 278 acupoints (of which 115 are meridian acupoints) were collected. The top 15 core acupoints are Tianshu (ST 25), Zusanli (ST 36), Zhongwan (CV 12), Fenglong (ST 40), San-yinjiao (SP 6), Quchi (LI 11), Yinlingquan (SP 9), Guanyuan (CV 4), Pishu (BL 20), Qihai (CV 6), Shenshu (BL 23), Shangjuxu (ST 37), Daheng (SP 15), Shuifen (CV 9), and Ganshu (BL 18), mainly distributing in the abdomen, lower limbs and back. Those acupoints with the highest core degree are attributed to the Stomach Meridian, Conception Vessel, Bladder Meri-dian, Spleen Meridian and Large Intestine Meridian. Regarding the compatibility of these acupoints, ST 25 and CV 12 have the highe-st correlation frequency, followed by ST 25 and ST 36, and ST 40 and ST 25, indicating the principle of different combinations being regional acupoints and meridian acupoints. CONCLUSION: In the treatment of simple obesity with catgut embedding, top 15 core acupoints as ST 25, ST 36, CV 12, ST 40, etc, and acupoint recipes as ST 25 and CV 12, ST 25 and ST 36, ST 40 and ST 25 are most frequently used in clinical practice.