Acupuncture combined with traditional Chinese medicine for knee osteoarthritis: A protocol for systematic review and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: With the aging of society, the incidence of knee osteoarthritis (KOA) is increasing year by year, which seriously affects the quality of life. Acupuncture therapy has been widely used in the treatment of osteoarthritis, but there is no complete systematic review on acupuncture combined with traditional Chinese medicine. Therefore, this study aims to clarify the efficacy and safety of acupuncture combined with traditional Chinese medicine in the treatment of KOA through systematic review and meta-analysis. METHODS: A structured and systematic literature search will be conducted in the following databases up to March, 20, 2022: PubMed, Embase, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, Web of Science, China National Knowledge Infrastructure, Chinese Biomedical Literature Database, Chinese Scientific and Journal Database, Wan Fang database and 2 clinical trials register platforms: Chinese Clinical Trial Registry, ClinicalTrials.gov (www.ClinicalTrials.gov/). We will use the Review Manager 5.4 software provided by the Cochrane Collaborative Network for statistical analysis. We then assessed the quality and risk of the included studies and observed the outcome measures. RESULTS: This meta-analysis further established the efficacy of acupuncture combined with traditional Chinese medicine in the treatment of KOA. CONCLUSION: This meta-analysis aims to investigate the efficacy of acupuncture combined with traditional Chinese medicine on patients with KOA and provide reliable evidence. To provide more options for clinicians and patients in the treatment of KOA.

Acupuncture-related techniques for prevention of type 2 diabetes mellitus in people with pre-diabetes: Protocol for a systematic review and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: In modern society, the incidence of diabetes is increasing year by year. Most individuals pass through a phase of prediabetes before developing full blown diabetes. Acupuncture-related has been widely used in the treatment of diabetes, but there is no systematic review of acupuncture-related on the control of blood glucose in prediabetes. Therefore, this study aims to conduct a meta-analysis of the clinical efficacy of acupuncutre-related therapy in preventing the development of diabetes in patients with prediabetes. METHODS: We will search Web of Science, The Cochrane Library, PubMed, Embase, Chinese Biomedical Literature Database (CBM), China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI), Wan-Fang Database, Chinese Scientific Journal Database (VIP Database) from their respective inception dates to September 1, 2022 to identify potentially eligible studies. We will use the Review Manager 5.4 software provided by the Cochrane Collaborative Network for statistical analysis. We then assessed the quality and risk of the included studies and observed the outcome measures. RESULTS: This meta-analysis further elucidates the protective effects of acupuncture-related techniques on patients with prediabetes. CONCLUSION: The purpose of this meta-analysis was to investigate the effect of acupuncture- related techniques on blood glucose in patients with prediabetes, and to provide more methods for clinical prevention of conversion from prediabetes to diabetes.

Tuina for shoulder pain after stroke: A protocol for systematic review and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: Post-stroke shoulder pain is a relatively common complication in stroke patients, with an incidence of 16% to 84% and poor outcomes with anti-inflammatory or sedative medications. This study will evaluate the results of a randomized controlled trial to determine the effectiveness and safety of Tuina in the treatment of post-stroke shoulder pain. METHODS: The Chinese and English search strategies were used to search China National Knowledge Infrastructure, Chinese Scientific Journal Database, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, EMBASE, MEDLINE, PubMed, Wanfang Database, and Web of Science were used to search seven databases. All eligible studies published on or before September 15, 2022, will be selected. To improve the validity of this study, only clinical randomized controlled trials related to the use of Tuina for post-stroke shoulder pain will be included. The screening will be performed by 2 independent reviewers and data synthesis, bias analysis, subgroup analysis, and meta-analysis will be performed using RevMan (V.5.4) software. RESULTS: The study will provide a high-quality evaluation of the effectiveness and safety of Tuina in the treatment of post-stroke shoulder pain. CONCLUSION: This systematic review will provide evidence to determine whether Tuina is an effective and safe intervention for treating patients with post-stroke shoulder pain.PROSPERO registration number: CRD42022360401.

A systematic review of Tuina for cervical hypertension: A protocol for systematic review and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: Cervical hypertension is a secondary form of hypertension with a high incidence rate. As the main etiology of cervical hypertension is related to cervical spondylosis, commonly used antihypertensive drugs have poor efficacy in the treatment of cervical spondylosis, and improving the symptoms of cervical spondylosis can effectively reduce blood pressure. Massage can effectively improve the symptoms of patients with cervical hypertension, but there has been no systematic review of massage treatment for cervical hypertension. This study aimed to evaluate the efficacy and safety of massage in patients with cervical hypertension. METHODS: Before February 10, 2022, a systematic literature search was conducted using the following databases: Embase, SinoMed (previously called the Chinese Biomedical Database), China Science and Technology Journal Database for Chinese Technical Periodicals, Chinese National Knowledge Infrastructure, and Wanfang Data. Review Manager software (version 5.3) will be used for statistical analysis. Quality and risk assessments of the included studies were performed, and the outcome indicators of the trials were observed. RESULTS: This meta-analysis further confirmed the beneficial effects of massage in patients with cervical hypertension. CONCLUSION: This study investigated the efficacy and safety of massage therapy in patients with cervical hypertension, providing clinicians and patients with additional options for the treatment of this disease.

[Clinical observation on cluster acupuncture at scalp points combined with exercise therapy in treatment of limb spasm after stroke].

OBJECTIVE: To observe the clinical effect of cluster acupuncture at scalp points in treating limb spasm after stroke on the basis of conventional exercise therapy. METHODS: A total of 72 patients with limb spasm after stroke were randomly divided into an observation group (36 cases, 5 cases dropped off) and a control group (36 cases, 6 cases dropped off). The control group was treated with exercise therapy. In the observation group, on the basis of the control group, penetrating technique of acupuncture was exerted at Qianding (GV 21) to Baihui (GV 20), Xinhui (GV 22) to Qianding (GV 21), etc. once a day, 5 days a week for 4 weeks. Before and after treatment, the changes of the modified Ashworth scale (MAS), simplified Fugl-Meyer motor assessment (FMA), and modified Barthel index (MBI) scores of the two groups were compared. RESULTS: After treatment, the MAS scores of upper and lower limbs in the two groups were lower than before treatment (P<0.05), and those in the observation group were lower than the control group (P<0.05). After treatment, the scores of FMA and BMI in the two groups were higher than before treatment (P<0.05), and the score of MBI in the observation group was higher than the control group (P<0.05). CONCLUSION: On the basis of conventional exercise therapy, cluster acupuncture at scalp points can reduce the spasm, improve motor function and activities of daily living in patients with limb spasm after stroke.

Efficacy and safety of external therapy of TCM for diabetic peripheral vascular disease: A protocol for systematic review and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: In modern society, the incidence of diabetes is increasing yearly, and poor glycemic control can accelerate the progression and severity of diabetic peripheral vascular disease. External treatment with traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) has been widely used in the treatment of diabetes, but there is no systematic review on the external treatment of TCM for diabetic peripheral vascular disease; therefore, this study aimed to conduct a meta-analysis on the clinical efficacy and safety of external treatment of TCM in the treatment of diabetic peripheral vascular diseases. METHODS: We searched The Cochrane Library, PubMed, Web of Science, EMBASE, China Science and Technology Journal, China National Knowledge Infrastructure, Wanfang, Chinese Biomedical Literature Database, and other sources from their respective inception dates to October 20, 2022, to identify potentially eligible studies. We will use Review Manager 5.4 software provided by the Cochrane Collaborative Network for statistical analysis. We then assessed the quality and risk of the included studies and observed their outcome measures. RESULTS: Changes in the bilateral femoral artery, popliteal artery, dorsal artery diameter, blood flow, ankle/brachial index, and dorsal foot temperature: An overall reduction in symptoms (a reduction in diabetes-related symptoms that occur only during the intervention or as a result of the intervention, including peripheral vascular disease). CONCLUSION: The objective of this meta-analysis was to investigate the influence of external treatment of traditional Chinese medicine on diabetic peripheral vascular disease and to provide more methods for the clinical prevention and treatment of diabetic peripheral vascular disease.

Underlying Mechanism and Active Ingredients of Tianma Gouteng Acting on Cerebral Infarction as Determined via Network Pharmacology Analysis Combined With Experimental Validation.

Cerebral infarction (CI), a common cerebrovascular disease worldwide, is caused by unknown factors common to many diseases, including hypokalemia, respiratory diseases, and lower extremity venous thrombosis. Tianma Gouteng (TMGT), a traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) prescription, has been used for the clinical treatment of CI. In this study, high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) fingerprint analysis was used to detect and identify major chemical constituents of TMGT. TCMSP and BATMAN-TCM databases were used to screen for active TMGT constituent compounds, while the GeneCards database was used to screen for protein targets associated with CI. Next, GO and KEGG enrichment analysis of these core nodes were performed to determine the identities of key associated biological processes and signal pathways. Meanwhile, a total of six possible gene targets of TMGT, including NFKBIA, PPARG, IL6, IL1B, CXCL8, and HIF1A, were selected for further study using two cellular models of CI. For one model, PC12 cells were treated under oxygen and glucose deprivation (OGD) conditions to generate an OGD cellular model of CI, while for the other model, BV2 cells were stimulated with lipopolysaccharide (LPS) to generate a cellular model of CI-associated inflammation. Ultimately TMGT treatment increased PPARγ expression and downregulated the expression of p-P65, p-IκBα, and HIF-1α in both OGD-induced and LPS-induced cell models of CI. In addition, molecular docking analysis showed that one TMGT chemical constituent, quercetin, may be a bioactive TMGT compound with activity that may be associated with the alleviation of neuronal damage and neuroinflammation triggered by CI. Moreover, additional data obtained in this work revealed that TMGT could inhibit neuroinflammation and protect brain cells from OGD-induced and LPS-induced damage by altering HIF-1α/PPARγ/NF-κB pathway functions. Thus, targeting this pathway through TMGT administration to CI patients may be a strategy for alleviating nerve injury and neuroinflammation triggered by CI.

Tuina for diabetic peripheral neuropathy: A protocol for a systematic review and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: Diabetic peripheral neuropathy (DPN) is one of the most common microvascular complications of diabetes mellitus, with an incidence ranging from 60% to 90%. With the change in modern dietary structure, the incidence of diabetes is increasing year by year, and DPN is also on the rise. Tuina therapy has been widely used in the treatment of DPN, but there is no systematic review on the treatment of DPN. Therefore, this study aimed to conduct a meta-analysis of Tuina in the treatment of DPN to clarify its efficacy. METHODS: The following electronic databases will be searched: PubMed, the Cochrane Library, Embase, Web of Science, Medline, CNKI, Chinese Biomedical Literature Database, VIP, and Wan Fang databases. We will consider articles published between database initiation and May 2021. We will use Review Manager 5.4, provided by the Cochrane Collaborative Network for statistical analysis. Clinical randomized controlled trials related to Tuina for diabetic peripheral neuropathy were included in this study. Language is limited to both Chinese and English. Research selection, data extraction, and research quality assessments were independently completed by two researchers. We then assessed the quality and risk of the included studies and observed the outcome measures. RESULTS: This study provides a high-quality synthesis to assess the effectiveness and safety of Tuina for treating diabetic peripheral neuropathy. CONCLUSION: This systematic review will provide evidence to determine whether Tuina is an effective and safe intervention for patients with diabetic peripheral neuropathy. ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: The protocol of the systematic review does not require ethical approval because it does not involve humans. This article will be published in peer-reviewed journals and presented at relevant conferences. REGISTRATION NUMBER: INPLASY202150027.

Tuina for spasticity of poststroke: protocol of a systematic review and meta-analysis.

INTRODUCTION: Spasticity is a common complication of poststroke, tuina is a widely used rehabilitation treatment, although there is a lack of supportive evidence on efficacy and safety for patients with poststroke spasticity. The aim of this systematic review is to assess and synthesis evidence of efficacy and safety of tuina for spasticity of poststroke. METHODS AND ANALYSIS: A comprehensive electronic search of EMBASE, MEDLINE, Cochrane Library, Web of Science, Wiley, Springer, PEDro, Chinese Science Citation Database, China National Knowledge Infrastructure, Chinese Biomedical Literature Database, Chinese Scientific and Journal Database (VIP), Wanfang Database (Wanfang), Japanese medical database (CiNii), Korean Robotics Institute Summer Scholars and Thailand Thai-Journal Citation Index Centre will be conducted to search literatures of randomised controlled trials of tuina for spasticity of poststroke survivors range from the establishment to 1 January 2020.There is no time of publication limitations. The primary outcome will be measured with the Modified Ashworth Scale, and the second outcome will include Fugl-Meyer Assessment Scale, surface electromyogram RMS value, the Modified Barthel Index, Stroke Specific Quality of Life Scale, quality of life 36-Item Short-Form Health Survey and Visual Analogue Scale. Cochrane Handbook for Systematic Reviews of Interventions will be used to assess the risk of bias, and GRADE will be used to access the confidence in cumulative evidence. The protocol will be conducted according to approach and Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis Protocols 2015. ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: Ethical approval will not be required, for no primary data of individual patients were collected. We will publish the findings in a peer-reviewed journal. PROSPERO REGISTRATION NUMBER: CRD42020163384.

Effect of Electroacupuncture at GV20 on Sleep Deprivation-Induced Depression-Like Behavior in Mice.

Accumulating evidence suggests that sleep deprivation (S-Dep) is a critical risk factor for depression. Electroacupuncture (EA) treatment has been reported to ameliorate posttraumatic stress disorder- (PSTD-) like behavior and enhance hippocampal neurogenesis. However, whether EA treatment has any beneficial effect on S-Dep-induced depression-like behavior is still unknown. In the present study, we focused on whether EA at Baihui (GV20) can ameliorate the deterioration effect of S-Dep in mice. Mice were randomly divided into normal, S-Dep, S-Dep + EA, and S-Dep + sham EA groups. Cognitive behavior test and in vitro assay were performed separately to avoid the influence of behavior test on synaptic transmission and protein expression. Depression-like behaviors were determined by forced swimming test (FST), tail suspension test (TST), and Morris water maze (MWM). Neurogenesis was identified by BrdU, DCX, and NeuN immunofluorescence staining. In vitro long-term potentiation was detected by high frequency stimulation (HFS) at Schaffer collateral-CA1 synapses in hippocampal slices. Brain-derived neurotropic factor (BDNF) and tropomyosin receptor kinase B (TrkB) protein expression level were assayed by western blot. Our results indicated that D-Sep mice demonstrated depression-like behaviors determined by prolonged immobility duration in FST and TST; D-Sep mice also manifested spatial memory retention deficit in MWM. Furthermore, EA treatment ameliorated D-Sep-induced depression-like behaviors and spatial memory retention deficit. Mechanically, EA treatment alleviated neuron progenitor cell proliferation and differentiation, ameliorated the field excitatory postsynaptic potentials (fEPSPs) slope impaired by S-Dep, and elevated BDNF/TrkB protein expression. Taken together, our data suggested that EA treatment has a protective effect on S-Dep-induced depression-like behavior and cognitive impairment, which may be through regulating BDNF/TrkB protein expression.

The efficacy and safety of Lianhua Qingwen (LHQW) for coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19): A protocol for systematic review and meta analysis.

BACKGROUND: Since the outbreak of Novel Coronavirus Pneumonia (NCP), it has swept the world with rapid development. Up to now, there is no effective drug to treat it. Lianhua Qingwen has been used in the treatment of COVID-19 in China, but there is no systematic review about it. This study will systematically evaluate its efficacy and safety in the treatment of COVID-19. METHODS: We will search electronic database of PubMed, EMBASE, Cochrane library, Web of Science (WOS), China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI), Chinese Biomedical Literature Database (CBM), Chinese Scientific and Journal Database (VIP) and Wan Fang database (Wanfang) for the literature of RCTs of Lianhua Qingwen capsule for coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). We will also search the Chinese Clinical Trial Registry (ChiCTR) and ClinicalTrials.gov (www.ClinicalTrials.gov) for ongoing trials with unpublished data, and the Conference abstracts will be searched manually. We will use the Cochrane Handbook for Systematic Reviews of Interventions to assess the risk of bias. The protocol will be conducted according to the approach and Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis Protocols (PRISMA-P). RESULTS: The study results will provide evidence of the efficacy and safety of Lianhua Qingwen (LHQW) for coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). CONCLUSION: The result of the study will be published in a peer-reviewed journal. PROSPERO REGISTRATION NUMBER: CRD42020180877.

Efficacy of acupuncture and moxibustion in adjuvant treatment of patients with novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19): A protocol for systematic review and meta analysis.

BACKGROUND: Novel coronavirus has infected 4.33 million people in more than 200 countries in the current global outbreak of COVID-19. However, there is still no effective drug to treat the disease, and acupuncture and moxibustion is utilized as adjuvant therapy for the treatment of COVID-19 in China. METHODS: Nine electronic databases: PubMed, EMBASE, Cochrane library, Web of Science (WOS), Google Scholar, China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI), Chinese Biomedical Literature Database (CBM), Chinese Scientific and Journal Database (VIP), Wan Fang database (Wanfang) and 2 clinical trials register platforms: Chinese Clinical Trial Registry (ChiCTR), ClinicalTrials.gov (www.ClinicalTrials.gov/) will be searched for RCTs of A&M for COVID-19. The screening process will be developed by 2 independent reviewers, and meta-analysis will be performed with RevMan (V5.3.5) software. RESULTS: The study results will be contributed to a scientific journal after peer-reviewed for publication. CONCLUSION: The study will provide up-to-date evidence of the effectiveness and safety of A&M for patients with COVID-19. PROSPERO REGISTRATION NUMBER: CRD42020185776.

The efficacy and safety of Jinhua Qinggan granule (JHQG) in the treatment of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19): A protocol for systematic review and meta analysis.

BACKGROUND: Currently, the global number of infected novel coronavirus has exceeded 2.6 million and the death toll has exceeded 170,000, but the specific drug for the treatment of COVID-19 has been not appears. In the process of fighting COVID-19 in China, JHQG has been promoted by the Chinese government and widely used in the treatment of COVID-19. The purpose of this study is to systematically evaluate the efficacy and safety of JHQG for COVID-19. METHODS: We are going to search the electronic databases: PubMed, EMBASE, Cochrane library, Web of Science (WOS), Google scholar, China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI), Chinese Biomedical literature Database (CBM), Chinese Scientific and Journal Database (VIP), Wan Fang database (Wanfang) for published clinical trails and search clinical trials register platforms of Chinese Clinical Trial Registry (ChiCTR) and ClinicalTrials.gov (www.ClinicalTrials.gov/) for ongoing trials of Jinhua Qinggan granule for COVID-19. The primary outcomes of the included studies contain Clinical symptom disappearance rate and the secondary outcomes obtain: TCM syndrome scale score, Hamilton anxiety scale score, and adverse events. We will use RevMan V5.3 software to perform the calculations. PRISMA-P checklist was used in writing this report. RESULTS: The study results will be submitted to a peer-reviewed journal for publication. CONCLUSION: This study will provide a high-quality evidence of the efficacy and safety of Jinhua Qinggan granule on patients with COVID-19. PROSPERO REGISTRATION NUMBER: CRD42020181919.

Standardization of rehabilitation program for post-apoplectic limb spasm treated by Tongjing Tiaoxing tuina and scalp acupuncture with physical therapy.

BACKGROUND: Tong Jing Tiao Xing tuina (TJTX) is a Chinese massage method. Excising with scalp acupuncture (ESA) is a treatment combining scalp electroacupuncture with physical therapy (PT), and yinao fujian formula (YNFJ) is a Chinese oral herbal granule medicine. The combination of the 3 methods is called the "Zhishen Tiaoxing" (ZSTX) rehabilitation program, which is used as an alternative of limb spasm after stroke. There is little available evidence demonstrating its safety and efficacy. METHODS: This will be a subject-blind, randomized controlled trial conducted in 3 medical centers. It will strictly follow the Standards for Reporting Interventions in Clinical Trials of Acupuncture, 2010. We will recruit 316 patients with limb spasm after stroke, 200 from the Affiliated Hospital of Changchun University of Chinese Medicine, Changchun, China, 80 from the Second Affiliated Hospital of Heilongjiang University of Chinese medicine, Harbin, China, and 36 from Huashan Hospital of Fudan University, Shanghai, China. A block randomization sequence stratified by centers will be generated using SAS Version 9.2 software (SAS Institute, Cary, NC, USA), which was performed at the Guangdong Provincial Hospital of Chinese Medicine's Key Unit of Methodology in Clinical Research. The treatment group is treated with TJTX (once a day), ESA (once a day), and oral YNFJ (twice a day). The control group will be treated with PT. Two groups of patients will be treated 5 sessions a week for 4 weeks, and there will be 6-month follow-up. The outcome evaluators will be blinded to patient grouping. The primary outcome will be modified Ashworth scales. The secondary outcome indexes will be the simplified Fugl-Meyer assessment scale, surface electromyogram root mean square value, modified Barthel index, stroke-specific quality of life scale, health scale of traditional Chinese medicine, visual analogue scale (VAS), and the Hamilton depression scale. DISCUSSION: The Randomized Controlled Trial (RCT) mainly aim to evaluate the effectiveness and safety of traditional Chinese medicine rehabilitation program, by comparing the treatment of ZSTX with the PT for the treatment of limb spasm after stroke. TRIAL REGISTRATION: Chinese Clinical Trial Registry: ChiCTR 1900024255. Registered on July 3, 2019.

Tranquilizing and Allaying Excitement Needling Method Affects BDNF and SYP Expression in Hippocampus.

Sleep disorder is a state of sleep loss caused by various reasons, which leads to a series of changes, such as emotion, learning and memory, and immune function. "Tranquilizing and allaying excitement" was widely used in clinical treatment of insomnia; however, the mechanism was still not very clear. We randomly divided rats into three groups: control group, sleep deprivation group, and acupuncture treatment group. We observed BDNF and SYP expression in hippocampus in these three groups. Both protein contents and mRNA contents of BDNF and SYP were measured by western blot, immunohistochemistry, and RT-PCR analysis. The sleep deprivation model was established using modified multiple platform sleep deprivation method (MMPM). Our study explored the BDNF and SYP abnormality in hippocampus caused by sleep deprivation and "tranquilizing and allaying excitement" intervention regulated the abnormal expression of BDNF and SYP caused by sleep deprivation on the short run and the long run. Our study provided a molecular evidence that "tranquilizing and allaying excitement" treatment in rats with sleep disorder affects learning and memory ability.

Glycyrrhetinic acid protects mice from Staphylococcus aureus pneumonia.

In the present study, the antimicrobial activity of glycyrrhetinic acid (GA) against Staphylococcus aureus, and its influence on the production of S. aureus alpha-haemolysin (Hla) were investigated, along with the in vivo activity of GA against S. aureus-induced pneumonia. GA could not inhibit the growth of S. aureus, but the secretion of Hla by S. aureus was significantly inhibited by low concentrations of GA in a dose-dependent manner. Furthermore, in vivo data show that GA provides protection against staphylococcal pneumonia in a murine model system.