RESUMEN
BACKGROUND: Whether Tai Chi benefits patients with osteoarthritis remains controversial. We performed a meta-analysis to assess the effectiveness of Tai Chi exercise for pain, stiffness, and physical function in patients with osteoarthritis. METHODS: A computerized search of PubMed and Embase (up to Sept 2012) was performed to identify relevant studies. The outcome measures were pain, stiffness, and physical function. Two investigators identified eligible studies and extracted data independently. The quality of the included studies was assessed by the Jadad score. Standard mean differences (SMDs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated and pooled using a random effects model. The change in outcomes from baseline was compared to the minimum clinically important difference. RESULTS: A total of seven randomized controlled trials involving 348 patients with osteoarthritis met the inclusion criteria. The mean Jadad score was 3.6. The pooled SMD was -0.45 (95% CI -0.70--0.20, Pâ=â0.0005) for pain, -0.31 (95% CI -0.60--0.02, Pâ=â0.04) for stiffness, and -0.61 (95% CI -0.85--0.37, P<0.00001) for physical function. A change of 32.2-36.4% in the outcomes was greater than the minimum clinically important difference. CONCLUSIONS: Twelve-week Tai Chi is beneficial for improving arthritic symptoms and physical function in patients with osteoarthritis and should be included in rehabilitation programs. However, the evidence may be limited by potential biases; thus, larger scale randomized controlled trials are needed to confirm the current findings and investigate the long-term effects of Tai Chi.
Asunto(s)
Osteoartritis/fisiopatología , Osteoartritis/terapia , Dolor/fisiopatología , Taichi Chuan , Estudios de Casos y Controles , Humanos , Osteoartritis/complicaciones , Evaluación de Resultado en la Atención de Salud , Dolor/complicaciones , Ensayos Clínicos Controlados Aleatorios como Asunto , Resultado del TratamientoRESUMEN
Novel 1-(2-aminopyrazin-3-yl)methyl-2-thioureas are described as inhibitors of mitogen-activated protein kinase-activated protein kinase 2 (MK-2). These compounds demonstrate potent in vitro activity against the enzyme with IC(50) values as low as 15 nM, and suppress expression of TNFalpha in THP-1 cells and in vivo in an acute inflammation model in mice. The synthesis, structure-activity relationship (SAR), and biological evaluation of these compounds are discussed.