A comprehensive practical review of acupoint embedding as a semi-permanent acupuncture: A mini review.

Since ancient times, acupuncture has been utilized in the treatment of lots of diseases, as a part of Traditional Chinese Medicine. Acupoint embedding (AEM) therapy, known as catgut embedding, is a development of acupuncture that consists of inserting catgut or surgical threads into specific acupoints to produce continuous acupoint stimulation based on the theory of Traditional Chinese Medicine. The remaining thread in the acupoint works as a semi-permanent acupuncture needle that results in decreasing the total time of the treatment which is required for continuous manual acupuncture sessions and increasing the treatment efficacy and patients' satisfaction. In each session of AEM about twenty 1 to 2 cm-long threads-natural origin, synthetic polymer, or bioactive threads-will be inserted at the target acupoints and this process will be repeated every 3 to 4 weeks. Indications of AEM are somehow similar to manual acupuncture including obesity, pain, musculoskeletal inflammations, infertility, etc, and it cannot be performed on pregnant women and pediatrics. AEM demonstrates its therapeutic effects via modulating immune system function, alleviating body inflammatory conditions, affecting the neurohormonal system, and other mechanisms. Subcutaneous indurations, redness, bleeding, hematoma, and bruising are some adverse events reported following the AEM. In conclusion, the scientific literature suggests that AEM is a relatively safe and convenient therapy if performed by a professional skilled practitioner.

Comparative efficacy of acupuncture, venesection, and physical therapy on chronic low back pain outcomes: a randomized clinical trial.

Objective: Chronic low back pain (CLBP) imposes considerable financial and social burden with poor response to medical and surgical treatments. Alternatively, acupuncture and venesection(Fasd) are traditionally used to alleviate nociceptive and musculoskeletal pains. This study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness and the safety of acupuncture and venesection on CLBP and patient functionality. Methods: The current study was a single-blinded, randomized clinical trial with balanced allocation, conducted in the Department of Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation Medicine, in 2022. One hundred five CLBP patients who had no back pain-attributable structural or major diseases were randomly allocated into three parallel arms and received either physical therapy (PTG), acupuncture (APG), or venesection (VSG). Pain severity and functional aspects were evaluated using the visual analogue scale (VAS) and Oswestry disability index (ODI) during the study. VAS and ODI scores were defined as the primary outcomes. Results: Ninety-five patients were reviewed in the final analysis (PTG=33, APG=30, VSG=31). Demographic data showed equal group distribution. Statistical analysis showed all procedures had reduced VAS score immediately after the first session, after the last session, and after follow-up; however, APG and VSG values were significantly lower (P<0.05). Pain reduction results in follow-up period were more sustainable in APG and VSG as compared to PTG (P<0.01). ODI results revealed global improvement after the last session of the treatment in all groups, while APG had more significant results (P<0.05). During the follow-up period, ODI still tended to decrease in VSG, non-significantly increased in APG, and significantly increased in PTG. Only two patients reported fainting after receiving venesection. Conclusion: Considering the pain and functional scores, both acupuncture and venesection can reproduce reliable results. Acupuncture and venesection both have sustained effects on pain and daily function of the patients even after treatment termination, while physical therapy had more relapse in pain and functional limitations.

Acupuncture or cupping plus standard care versus standard care in moderate to severe COVID-19 patients: An assessor-blinded, randomized, controlled trial.

Background: Non-pharmacological strategies that have been proposed by complementary medical systems, can be effective in management of COVID-19. Methods: This study was designed as a three-arm, assessor-blinded, randomized controlled trial. A total of 139 hospitalized COVID-19 patients were randomly assigned into three groups: (1) acupuncture (ACUG), (2) cupping (CUPG), and (3) control (CTRG). All participants received conventional treatment. The primary study endpoint included changes in respiratory signs including oxygen saturation (SpO2) and respiratory rate (RR). The secondary endpoints were COVID-19-related hospitalization duration and serious adverse events such as intensive care unit (ICU) admission, intubation or death, all up to day 30. Also, improvements in cough, dyspnea, chest tightness, oxygen demand, anorexia, headache, weakness, sore throat, and myalgia were evaluated. Results: Forty-two patients in ACUG, 44 patients in CUPG, and 42 patients in CTRG completed the trial. After 3 days, SpO2 and RR improved significantly in CUPG and ACUG compared with CTRG (effect size: 8.49 (6.4 to 10.57) and 8.51 (6.67 to 10.34), respectively: p<0.001). Compared with CTRG, patients in CUPG and ACUG recovered faster (mean difference: 6.58 (4.8 to 8.35) and 9.16 (7.16 to 11.15), respectively) and except for two patients in ACUG who were admitted to ICU, none of patients in ACUG or CUPG needed ICU or intubation (p<0.001 in comparison to CTRG). Amelioration of clinical COVID-19 related symptoms reached a high level of statistical significance in CUPG and ACUG in comparison with CTRG (p<0.01). Conclusion: Cupping and acupuncture are promising safe and effective therapies in management of COVID-19. Trial registration: This study was registered at Iranian Registry of Clinical Trials: IRCT20201127049504N1 (https://en.irct.ir/trial/52621).

The effects of medicinal herbs on gut microbiota and metabolic factors in obesity models: A systematic review.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: This systematic review of animal studies aimed to identify anti-obesity medicinal herbs with prebiotic properties, and investigate their effects on gut microbiota and metabolic disorders. METHODS: To obtain the relevant publications, four electronic databases were systematically searched up to June 2019. RESULTS: Out of 1949 publications, 20 articles met the inclusion criteria in this study. Apart from body weight, some cases (n = 11) had reported the effects of medicinal herbs on metabolic parameters, including lipid profile (n = 7) and glycemic status (n = 4). CONCLUSION: Although some medicinal herbs could be effective in modulating metabolic status and body weight, through making changes in the gut flora, further studies are needed to confirm the efficacy of such herbs in clinical trials.

Warm Cupping of the Posterior Thorax in Combination with Standard Conventional Therapy for ARDS in COVID-19 Patients in ICU: a Case Series.

Acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) is commonly found in critically ill patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). As a non-pharmacological treatment of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM), cupping has been clinically used for respiratory symptoms. We sequentially identified a series of patients with COVID-19 with ARDS who were admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU). Warm cupping of the posterior thorax was performed for seven days. We collected longitudinal severity scores on cough, breathlessness, chest tightness, type of oxygen therapy, and oxygen saturation (SpO2). We hereby report the changes in the severity scores in a series of eight patients who received 21 sessions of cupping in addition to conventional treatments. All patients reported improvement in symptom scores that was matched by an increase in SpO2 by as much as 3.16%. All patients were discharged and did not require the use of a mechanical ventilator. The results suggest that combining cupping with conventional treatment may provide a good prognosis for patients with COVID-19 with ARDS.