[Effects of electroacupuncture on pregnancy outcome in poor ovarian response patients of kidney essence deficiency and undergoing in vitro fertilization-embryo transfer].

OBJECTIVE: To observe the effects of electroacupuncture (EA) on ovarian reaction, egg and embryo quality, as well as pregnancy rate in poor ovarian response (POR) patients of kidney essence deficiency and undergoing in vitro fertilization-embryo transfer (IVF-ET). METHODS: Ninety-six patients who met the inclusion criteria were randomly divided into an EA group and a control group, with 48 cases in each group. Before IVF-ET, the patients in the EA group received EA, once daily, 2 or 3 treatments a week for 12 weeks. Before and after the treatment, traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) syndrome score and clinical pregnancy rate were assessed in two groups. The concentrations of serum follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH), luteinsing hormone, estradiol, progesterone and anti-mullerian hormone were detected by chemiluminescence; the contents of serum insulin-like growth factor-1, serum inhibin B (INHB) and Kisspeptin in follicular fluid were determined by enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA); the antral follicle counting (AFC) was detected by color Doppler ultrasonography; and the egg and embryo conditions were observed under microscope. Fourteen days after embryo transfer, the positive rate of serum hemchoriconic gonadotropin (HCG) and clinical pregnancy rate were calculated. RESULTS: After the treatment, the TCM syndrome score and level of serum FSH were reduced (P<0.05); the INHB in serum and AFC were increased (P<0.05) when compared with those before the treatment in the EA group. After the treatment, in comparison with the control group, the TCM syndrome score and level of serum FSH were lower (P<0.05); and the contents of serum INHB, AFC, the numbers of MⅡ eggs and high-quality embryos, as well as serum HCG positive rate were all increased (P<0.05) in the EA group. CONCLUSION: EA can relieve the clinical symptoms of TCM in POR patients of kidney essence deficiency and undergoing IVF-ET, increase the ovarian reserve, reduce the serum FSH level, and improve the content of serum INHB, and the quality of eggs and embryos. This therapy tends to improve the clinical pregnancy rate and clinical pregnancy outcome.

[Rolling needle pricking-cupping therapy and traditional pricking-cupping therapy for cervical spondylosis of neck type: a randomized controlled trial].

OBJECTIVE: To compare the clinical efficacy between rolling needle pricking-cupping (RNP-C) and traditional pricking-cupping (TP-C) for cervical spondylosis of neck type. METHODS: A total of 96 patients with cervical spondylosis of neck type were randomly divided into an RNP-C group, a TP-C group and an electroacupuncture (EA) group, 32 cases in each group. Each group was treated with EA at Jingbailao (EX-HN 15), Fengchi (GB 20), Dazhui (GV 14), Jianjing (GB 21) and ashi points with continuous wave and 2 Hz of frequency; each EA treatment lasted for 20 min, once every 3 to 5 days, totaling 6 treatments. On the basis of EA treatment, the patients in the TP-C group were treated with bloodletting by seven-star needle, followed by fire cupping; the patients in the RNP-C group were treated with bloodletting by rolling needle, followed by fire cupping. The treatment was given once a week for 4 weeks. The follow-up was 1 month. Before treatment, 2 and 4 weeks into treatment and follow-up, the Northwick Park neck-pain questionnaire (NPQ) and visual analogue scale (VAS) scores were evaluated. The acupuncture pain degree was recorded at the first treatment and 2 and 4 weeks into treatment. The efficacy was evaluated after 4 weeks of treatment. RESULTS: Compared before treatment, the scores of NPQ and VAS in each group were all reduced at 2 and 4 weeks into treatment and follow-up (P<0.05). The scores of NPQ in the TP-C group and the RNP-C group were lower than those in the EA group at 2 and 4 weeks into treatment (P<0.05). The scores of VAS in the TP-C group and the RNP-C group were lower than those in the EA group at 2 and 4 weeks into treatment and follow-up (P<0.05). The differences of NPQ and VAS scores between the TP-C group and the RNP-C group at each time point after treatment were not significant (P>0.05). The acupuncture pain degree in the RNP-C group was lower than that in the TP-C group (P<0.05). The total effective rates were 79.3% (23/29) in the TP-C group and 75.0% (24/32) in the RNP-C group, which was superior to 63.3% (19/30) in the EA group (P<0.05), but there was no statistical significance between the TP-C group and the RNP-C group (P>0.05). CONCLUSION: TP-C and RNP-C could both improve the cervical pain symptoms in patients with cervical spondylosis of neck type, and improve the overall function of the cervical spine, and the curative effect is similar.

Warming Moxibustion Relieves Chronic Visceral Hyperalgesia in Rats: Relations to Spinal Dynorphin and Orphanin-FQ System.

As a twin therapy of acupuncture in traditional Chinese medicine, moxibustion has shown its effects in relieving abdominal pain in irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) patients and IBS rat models, but its mechanisms are largely unknown. In this paper, we determined the role of spinal dynorphin and orphanin-FQ system in analgesic effect of warming moxibustion (WM) on chronic visceral hyperalgesia (CVH) in IBS-like rat model. Here, we show that (1) repeated WM at bilateral ST25 and ST37 acupoints markedly attenuated the abdominal withdrawal reflex scores in CVH rats; (2) intrathecal administration of κ receptor antagonist prior to WM significantly attenuated the WM analgesia and dynorphinA (1-17) enhanced the WM analgesia. WM significantly reinforced the upregulation of spinal dynorphin mRNA/protein and κ receptor mRNA levels in CVH rats; (3) intrathecal administration of orphanin-FQ receptor antagonist prior to WM significantly attenuated the WM analgesia and orphanin-FQ enhanced the WM analgesia. WM reinforced the upregulation of spinal orphanin-FQ mRNA/protein and orphanin-FQ receptor mRNA levels in CVH rats. These results suggest that moxibustion may relieve CVH at least in part by activating spinal dynorphin and orphanin-FQ system.