Chaihu Longgu Muli Decoction for post-stroke insomnia: A protocol for systematic review and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: Poststroke insomnia (PSI) is a frequent complication of stroke usually as a comorbidity of poststroke depression and mainly occurs within the first 6 months after stroke.[1] Addressing PSI to improve stroke prognosis is of great value. Herbal medicine like Chaihu Longgu Muli Decoction (CLMD), which is commonly considered to be a good treatment for depression and epilepsy, has the therapeutic potential on PSI; however, insufficient systematic reviews were conducted to testify its efficacy. Therefore, the objective of this paper is to provide reliable evidence of the efficacy and safety of CLMD on PSI and a foundation for further investigation. METHODS: The literature of clinical randomized controlled trials (RCTs) regarding CLMD for PSI published before June of 2021 will be retrieved in the databases, and 2 investigators will be asked to collect and crosscheck the data independently. For the including studies, the quality evaluation on methodology will be assessed in the light of the Cochrane Handbook for Systematic Review of Interventions V.5.1.0 as well as the quality of evidence will be evaluated by the Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development, and Evaluation. Besides, the assessment of heterogeneity and reporting bias, the sensitivity analysis and the subgroup analysis will be conducted. Stata 15 will be applied to analyze the above data. RESULTS: The review will conduct a high-quality synthesis on present evidence of CLMD for PSI. CONCLUSION: The conclusion of the study will indicate whether CLMD is effective and safe for PSI.

Effect of different acupuncture and moxibustion methods on functional dyspepsia caused by sequelae of COVID-19: A protocol for systematic review and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: Functional dyspepsia (FD) is a group of diseases that cannot be explained after routine clinical examination, and is characterized by postprandial fullness, early satiety, and upper abdominal pain or burning. According to the statistics, FD continues to become one of the high-risk sequelae of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), affecting patients' quality of life, increasing psychological burden and increasing economic costs. However, its optimal treatment is still an urgent problem. A large number of studies have shown that acupuncture and moxibustion is effective and safe in the treatment of FD caused by sequelae of COVID-19, which is of research value. Therefore, based on the current literatures, the effectiveness and safety of different acupuncture and moxibustion methods were systematically evaluated to provide possible alternative therapy on FD. METHODS: Studies search for eligible randomized controlled trials that use different acupuncture and moxibustion methods as the sole treatment on FD and their data extraction will be done by 2 researchers. In case of disagreement, a third researcher will be introduced for arbitration. Mean difference or relative risk with fixed or random effect model in terms of 95% confidence interval will be adopted for the data synthesis. To evaluate the risk of bias, the Cochrane risk of bias assessment tool will be utilized. The sensitivity or subgroup analysis will also be conducted when meeting high heterogeneity (I2 > 50%). RESULTS: This meta-analysis will provide an authentic synthesis of different acupuncture and moxibustion methods on FD caused by sequelae of COVID-19. CONCLUSION: This meta-analysis will evaluate the effect of acupuncture and moxibustion on FD caused by sequelae of COVID-19, providing evidence as to the treatment in these patients.

Different acupuncture therapies combined with rehabilitation in the treatment of scapulohumeral periarthritis: A protocol for systematic review and network meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: Scapulohumeral periarthritis is a disease that seriously affects human daily work and life, and greatly reduces peoples quality of life and affects human health all over the world. Now, many studies have shown that acupuncture and rehabilitation have a significant effect on scapulohumeral periarthritis. In this study, network meta-analysis was used to analyze and compare the clinical efficacy and difference of different acupuncture treatments on scapulohumeral periarthritis. METHODS: All patients were diagnosed as scapulohumeral periarthritis by randomized controlled trial. Computer searches will be conducted on CNKI, Wan-Fang databases, VIP, CBM, Pubmed, Cochrane library, Embase, Web of Science. The retrieval period is from the date of database establishment to September 8, 2020. To avoid omissions, we will manually retrieve relevant references and conference papers. Finally, the risk of bias included in the study will be assessed according to the guidelines of the Cochrane Handbook for systematic review of interventions. All data analysis will be performed by Revman 5.3, WinBUGS1.4.3 and Stata14.2. RESULTS: The effectiveness of each intervention was quantified. The main results included cure rate, total effective rate, VAS score and shoulder function score. CONCLUSION: Objective to provide evidence-based medicine basis for clinicians to choose more effective acupuncture therapy for scapulohumeral periarthritis. INPLASY REGISTRATION NUMBER: 202090035.

Acupuncture for perimenopausal insomnia: A systematic review and meta-analysis protocol.

BACKGROUND: Perimenopausal insomnia (PI) is one of the most common complaints in women. Acupuncture is used to treat PI increasingly considering its less side effect. The subject of this study is to explore the effectiveness and safety of acupuncture for PI. METHODS: All the randomized controlled trials(RCT) literatures of acupuncture for PI will be searched in the databases of MEDLINE, Cochrane Library, Web of Science, EMBASE, Springer, WHO International Clinical Trials Registry Platform (ICTRP), China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI), Wan fang, Chinese Biomedical Literature Database (CBM), Chinese Scientific Journal Database (VIP), and other available resources using the subject terms of 'acupuncture" and "perimenopausal insomnia" and their synonyms. The languages are limited as English and Chinese. Non-RCT literatures will be screened and relative information will be extracted. Sleep quality values is considered as the primary outcome. Secondary outcomes include biochemical indicators, such as hormone levels, side effects caused by acupuncture, total scores on the insomnia severity index and traditional Chinese medicine symptom changes. RESULTS: This systematic review study will provide an evidence of acupuncture for PI. CONCLUSION: The study will give an explicit evidence to evaluate the effectiveness and side effects of acupuncture for PI. PROSPERO REGISTRATION NUMBER: CRD42018092917.

Acupuncture for chronic prostatitis: A systematic review and meta-analysis protocol.

BACKGROUND: Chronic prostatitis (CP) is a prevalent genitourinary condition. Considering its safety profile, acupuncture can be an option treating CP symptoms. The aim of this review is to undertake a systematic review to estimate the effectiveness and safety of acupuncture on CP. METHODS: We will search all randomized controlled trials for CP in August 2018 in the databases of MEDLINE, Cochrane Library, Web of Science, EMBASE, Springer, WHO International Clinical Trials Registry Platform (ICTRP), China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI), Wan fang, Chinese Biomedical Literature Database (CBM), PsycInfo, Chinese Scientific Journal Database (VIP), and other available resources. Languages are limited as English and Chinese. Search terms used are will "acupuncture," and "chronic prostatitis," "non-bacterial prostatitis," "abacterial prostatitis." And duplicates will be screened. The primary outcomes consisted of improvement rate and pain relief evaluated by The National Institutes of Health Chronic Prostatitis Symptom Index (NIH-CPSI) index. Secondary outcomes include the recurrence rate and side effects, such as pneumothorax, discomforts, and infection. RESULTS: This study will demonstrate an evidence-based review of acupuncture for chronic prostatitis. CONCLUSION: The study will provide clear evidence to assess the effectiveness and side effects of acupuncture for chronic prostatitis. ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: There is no requirement of ethical approval and it will be in print or disseminated by electronic copies. PROSPERO REGISTRATION NUMBER: CRD42018088834.

A Mechanism Study of NMDAR1 in A Rat Alzheimer Disease (AD) Model

ABSTRACT This study aimed to investigate the expression and mechanism of N- methyl -D- aspartate receptor 1 (NMDAR1) in the pathogenesis of Alzheimer disease (AD). Eighty adult Wistar rats were randomly divided into 4 groups (n=20 each) to receive an injection of 0, 5, 7 and 10 μl of 1 μg/μl amyloid-β 42 (Aβ1-42) in the hippocampus. Twenty rats in normal control group were injected with equal volume of saline. After 10 days, the hippocampus was isolated from 5 randomly selected rats in each group. The NMDAR1 protein and mRNA expression was determined by immunohistochemical staining and qRT-PCR. The aquaporin-1 (AQP-1) mRNA expression was also measured by qRT-PCR. We found that both NMDAR1 and AQP-1 expression in Aβ1-42 groups was increased in a dose-dependent manner. NMDAR1 and AQP-1 expression in 7 and 10 μl Aβ1-42 groups was significantly higher compared with 0 μl Aβ1-42 group (P <0.01). Further, the 10 μl Aβ1-42 group was randomly divided into 3 subgroups: AD-NMDA, AD-MK-801, and AD-Ctrl subgroup, which was given an intraperitoneal injection of NMDAR agonist NMDA, NMDAR antagonist MK-801 and saline, respectively. The relative APQ-1 expression in each subgroup was determined by qRT-PCR and Western blot analysis after 24 h. The AQP-1 expression was significantly decreased in AD-MK-801 group (P < 0.05), but was markedly increased in AD-NMDA group when compared with AD-Ctrl group (P <0.01). Our study suggested that expression abnormity of NMDAR1 is involved in the pathogenesis of AD. NMDAR1 might regulate the pathogenic process through stimulating the expression of AQP-1.