Kampo for the Treatment of Pain in Japan: A Review.

Kampo, a branch of traditional Japanese herbal medicine, has been the backbone of Japanese medicine for more than 1500 years. The health insurance system in Japan allows patients to access both Western and Kampo medical care at the same time in the same medical institution. Kampo has been used for the treatment of not only acute but also chronic pain in Japan. In this review, we will elaborate on the short history of Kampo, its basic concepts, and use for the treatment of pain.

Jaw Exercise Therapy and Psychoeducation to Reduce Oral Parafunctional Activities for the Management of Persistent Dentoalveolar Pain.

Objective: To retrospectively analyze the effects of our original combination therapy treatment on patients with nonodontogenic persistent dentoalveolar pain. Methods: Twenty-one patients suffering from persistent dentoalveolar pain (nineteen females and two males; mean age ± standard deviation: 55.7 ± 19.6 years) participated in this study. They were treated with a therapy combination of jaw exercise and psychoeducation to reduce oral parafunctional activities every month. The intensity of pain in these subjects was evaluated using a numerical rating scale (NRS) before and after treatment. Results: The NRSs at the baseline ranged from 5 to 10 (median, 8), from 0 to 10 (median, 2) at one month after treatment, from 0 to 10 (median, 1) at three months after treatment, and from 0 to 10 (median, 0) at the end of treatment. Pain intensity after treatment improved significantly. Conclusion: There was a significant reduction in pain after our combination of therapies as nonpharmacological treatments, and therefore this treatment could be useful in the management of NPDP patients.

Observational Study of the Association Between Tongue Exam and the Kampo Diagnostic Procedure of Fuku Shin (Abdominal Exam) in Blood Stasis.

Blood stasis is a very important pathophysiological concept not only in Kampo but also in traditional Chinese medicine. Blood stasis indicates severe disease. Fuku shin (the abdominal exam) and Zetsu shin (the tongue exam) are the most important approaches of the 4 diagnostic procedures in Kampo. Tenderness of the lower abdominal region ( Sho fuku koh man) and distended sublingual veins have been mentioned as typical signs of blood stasis in Kampo or traditional Chinese medicine. The aim of the present study was to determine the association between Sho fuku koh man and distended sublingual veins. An appearance of sublingual veins and a level of Sho fuku koh man showed a significant and positive correlation ( rs = .5248; n = 279; P < .0001). In conclusion, the relationship between the appearance of sublingual veins and the level of Sho fuku koh man showed a significant and positive correlation.

Effects of Kamishoyosan, a Traditional Japanese Kampo Medicine, on Pain Conditions in Patients with Intractable Persistent Dentoalveolar Pain Disorder.

There are patients who suffer from persistent dentoalveolar pain disorder (PDAP) which is a pain of the teeth, either dentoalveolar pain or nonodontogenic toothache, and its cause has not yet been identified. An effective intervention for PDAP has not yet been established. Interventions for patients with PDAP are generally pharmacological treatments such as antidepressants, anticonvulsants, and pregabalin. However, these medicines are not always effective for patients. The pain disorder in the orofacial region including temporomandibular disorder (TMD) and PDAP was effectively treated with our original exercise therapy. However, we did observe some intractable cases of PDAP even when our original exercise therapy was used. This paper presents our findings in which Kamishoyosan improved the pain intensity in 14 out of 15 PDAP patients refractory to our original exercise therapy.

Peace, a MYB-like transcription factor, regulates petal pigmentation in flowering peach 'Genpei' bearing variegated and fully pigmented flowers.

Flowering peach Prunus persica cv. Genpei bears pink and variegated flowers on a single tree. The structural genes involved in anthocyanin biosynthesis were expressed strongly in pink petals but only very weakly or not at all in variegated petals. A cDNA clone encoding a MYB-like gene, isolated from pink petals was strongly expressed only in pink petals. Introduction of this gene, via biolistics gave magenta spots in the white areas of variegated petals, therefore this gene was named as Peace (peach anthocyanin colour enhancement). Differences in Peace expression determine the pattern of flower colouration in flowering peach. The R2R3 DNA-binding domain of Peace is similar to those of other plant MYBs regulating anthocyanin biosynthesis. Key amino acids for tertiary structure and the motif for interaction with bHLH proteins were conserved in Peace. Phylogenetic analysis indicates that Peace is closely related to AtMYB123 (TT2), which regulates proanthocyanidin biosynthesis in Arabidopsis, and to anthocyanin regulators in monocots rather than to regulators in dicots. This is the first report that a TT2-like R2R3 MYB has been shown to regulate anthocyanin biosynthesis.

The effects of exercise therapy for the improvement of jaw movement and psychological intervention to reduce parafunctional activities on chronic pain in the craniocervical region.

PURPOSE: Apparent organic abnormalities are sometimes not identified among patients suffering from chronic pain in the craniocervical region. In some cases, parafunctional activities (PAs) are recognized. PAs are nonfunctional oromandibular activities that include jaw clenching and bruxism, but are considered as factors that contribute to craniomandibular disorders (CMDs). It is now recognized that PAs and CMDs influence musculoskeletal conditions of the upper quarter. Exercise therapy (ET) to improve jaw movement and psychological intervention (PI) to reduce PAs are useful for PAs and CMDs. We hypothesized that ET and PI would be effective for craniocervical pain without organic abnormalities. METHODS: Thirty-nine subjects suffering from craniocervical chronic pain were allocated into 3 groups: The control group received only pharmacological treatment; the ET group received jaw movement exercise (JME); and the ET-PI group received JME and PI. Pain and jaw movement were evaluated using a numerical rating scale (NRS). RESULTS: After interventions, the NRS scores were significantly lower in the ET-PI group, compared with those in the other groups. Jaw movement improved 100% in the ET group, 92% in the ET-PI group, and 0% in the control group. CONCLUSION: A combination of jaw exercise and psychological intervention to reduce parafunctional activities is more effective than jaw exercise alone for the improvement of craniocervical pain without apparent organic abnormalities.

Kampo Diagnostic Procedure, Fuku shin, Could Be a Useful Diagnostic Tool for Psychopathological Patients Suffering from Chronic Pain.

Kampo, or traditional Japanese herbal medicine, has been used for clinical practice in Japan. The most appropriate Kampo formula should be chosen for each individual based on specific diagnostic procedures. Fuku shin, the abdominal exam, is one of the most important diagnostic procedures. There are several Fukushos (abdominal conformations). Depression and anxiety have been shown to be related to Shin ka hi koh, epigastric obstructive hardness, and neuroses have an association with Kyoh kyoh ku man, hypochondriac distress. The aim of our study was to compare Fukushos at each level of depression and anxiety symptoms and to assess the associations between occurrence and pain catastrophizing. Two hundred and twenty-nine patients were assigned to high-, moderate-, or low-level anxiety-depression groups based on the hospital anxiety and depression scale and were investigated for occurrence of major Fukushos. Moreover, the associations between occurrence and the pain catastrophizing scale (PCS) were analyzed. The moderate and high anxiety-depression groups showed a higher occurrence of Shin ka hi koh [low, 29%; moderate, 51%; high, 67%] (P < 0.0001). In contrast, the relationship between the occurrence of Kyoh kyoh ku man and the PCS showed a significant albeit small correlation (r s = 0.1296, n = 229, P = 0.0491).

Real-time and noninvasive monitoring of respiration activity of fertilized ova using semiconductor-based biosensing devices.

In this report, we propose a novel evaluation method of embryo activity, describing the real-time and noninvasive electrical monitoring of embryo activity, caused by fertilization of the sea urchin, using a biologically-coupled field-effect transistor (bio-FET) comprised of semiconductor-based biosensing devices. The detection principle of bio-FET is based on the potentiometric detection of charge density change at the gate insulator, which includes changes of hydrogen ion concentration corresponding to pH variation. The surface potential at the gate surface of the bio-FET increased after the introduction of sperms into the ova, resulting in fertilization on the gate sensing area. The positive shift of surface potential indicates the increase of positive charges of hydrogen ions generated by dissolved carbon dioxide in artificial sea water based on respiration activity of the embryo. Moreover, the electrical signal of embryo activity is suppressed due to the inhibition of cytokinesis by introduction of cytochalasin B. The platform based on the bio-FET is expected to be a real-time, label-free and noninvasive detection system, not only in fundamental studies of embryo activity but also in the evaluation of embryo quality for in vitro fertilization.

Open sandwich-based immuno-transistor for label-free and noncompetitive detection of low molecular weight antigen.

In this study, we proposed a new detection method, open sandwich-based immuno-field effect transistor (OS-FET) for label-free and noncompetitive detection of low molecular weight antigen. The principle of OS-FET is based on the detection of intrinsic molecular charges caused by the small antigen-dependent interchain interaction of separated V(L) and V(H) chains from a single antibody variable region using the field effect. Introducing V(H) chain and small antigen bisphenol A into the OS-FET with the immobilized V(L) chain on the gate, we could detect electrically and directly the binding of bisphenol A by V(H) and V(L) chains. Although the detection limit of OS-FET was 1 nM to detect bisphenol A for the standard deviation of control signal, the addition of isothiocyanobenzyl-EDTA with negative charges to the V(L) chain enhanced the detection limit to 1 pM. We could directly transduce the charge density changes based on the capture of target on the gate into the electrical signals using the OS-FET. The platform based on the FETs is suitable for a label-free, noncompetitive, and quantitative detection system for small antigen analysis in environmental, food, and clinical research.