Is Acupuncture Effective for Improving Insulin Resistance?A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis

This study aimed to evaluate the clinical efficacy of acupuncture for intervening insulin resistance (IR)by meta-analysis of related randomized controlled trials (RCTs).Studies published prior to 31 January 2018 were searched on Pubmed,Medline,Cochrane Library, Embase databases and Chinese databases.Only RCTs,which examined acupuncture as the sole or adjunctive treatment for IR-related diseases,were included.The primary outcome was homeostasis model assessment for insulin resistance (HOMA-IR).The secondary outcomes consisted of fasting blood glucose (FBG),fasting insulin (FINS)and 2-h postprandial blood glucose (2h-PBG).The differences between groups were reported as mean differences (MD).All statistical analyses were performed using RevMan software 5.3.After carefully screening relevant studies,9 RCTs involving 562 patients (279 in experimental group and 283 in control group)were enrolled in this study.The pooled results showed that acupuncture had significant effects on HOMA-IR (MD 0.70,95%CI 0.04 to 1.35,P=-0.04<0.05),FINS (MD 3.35mU/L,95%CI 1.99 to 4.7,P<0.001)and 2h-PBG (MD 1.03 mmol/L,95%CI 0.25 to 1.82,P=0.01).However,the differences in FBG were not significant (MD 0.28 mmol/L,95%CI -0.28 to 0.84,P=0.32>0.05).The present meta-analysis indicated that acupuncture can help to improve IR to a certain extent,which remains to be confirmed by further high-quality RCTs.

Triple Puncture for Primary Trigeminal Neuralgia:A Randomized Clinical Trial

To evaluate the effect of triple puncture on primary trigeminal neuralgia (pTN),64 patients with pTN were randomly assigned to two groups:treatment group and control group.The participants in the treatment group received triple puncture treatment of 6 times per week for 4 weeks,and those in control group were given carbamazepine (300-600 mg per day) for at least 1 month.Before and after treatment,the primary outcomes including the total efficiency rate and the VAS pain scores,and the secondary outcomes including the frequency of pain attack and adverse events were observed.Sixty-two participants finished the study (33 in treatment group and 29 in control group individually).After treatment,the symptoms (mainly pain) of the two groups were alleviated.The total efficiency rate in the treatment group and control group was 90.9% and 75.9% respectively.The VAS pain scores and frequency of pain attack were significantly reduced in the treatment group as compared with the control group (P<0.05).The incidence of adverse events in the treatment group and control group was 9.1% and 24.1% respectively.It can be inferred that triple puncture can effectively improve the quality of life of patients with pTN and has less side effects.

Acupuncture in preventing postoperative nausea and vomiting:a systematic review and Bayesian network meta-analysis

However,the best choice of acupuncture therapy for postoperative nausea and vomiting remains controversy.Methods:Several databases were searched from inception to April 2020.Randomized controlled trials met the criterion were included.Risk of bias was implemented with Cochrane risk-of-bias tool.Addis,R,OpenBUGS and STATA were used to conduct meta-analysis.The evidence was assessed by GRADE profiler 3.6.Results:Fifty studies involving 5980 patients were included.The risk of bias of most included studies were acceptable.The results of network meta-analyses indicated,compared with placebo,electroacupuncture was the best choice for postoperative nausea(odds ratio=0.09,95%confidence interval:0.02-0.51)and acupoint plaster for postoperative vomiting(odds ratio=0.07,95%confidence interval:0.01-0.42),acupoint catgut embedding+5HTRA for postoperative nausea and vomiting(odds ratio=0.05,95%confidence interval:0.01-0.15),and transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation+5-hydroxytryptamine receptor antagonists for postoperative rescue antiemetics(odds ratio=0.14,95%confidence interval:0.08-0.46).Conclusion:It was suggested transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation+5-hydroxytryptamine receptor antagonists was the best choice.The results provided guidance for the prevention of postoperative nausea and vomiting.

Clinical research progress of acupuncture therapy in the treatment of ankylosing spondylitis

Ankylosing spondylitis is a chronic inflammatory disease characterized by ankylosis of the spine and sacroiliac joints.The continuous development of this disease can cause damage to multiple organs.At present,modern medical treatment programs generally focus on symptomatic treatment such as analgesia and anti-inflammatory,which can relieve pain and inflammation to a certain extent,but there are many problems such as adverse drug reactions,and cannot be completely cured.Modern medical treatment of ankylosing spondylitis focuses on relieving symptoms,controlling disease activity,slowing disease progression,and reducing disability rates.As an important part of traditional Chinese medicine,acupuncture therapy,compared with modern medicine,has obvious advantages in the treatment of ankylosing spondylitis,such as good curative effect,quick effect,safety and low price,and no toxic and side effects.By reviewing the literature,it is found that there are a large number of clinical studies on the treatment of ankylosing spondylitis by acupuncture and moxibustion in recent years,and it is concluded that acupuncture and moxibustion has unique advantages in reducing local pain,alleviating inflammatory symptoms,improving joint function,preventing spinal deformity,and improving quality of life.Therefore,this study summarizes and reviews the relevant literature on different acupuncture and moxibustion therapy for ankylosing spondylitis,in order to provide ideas and solutions for the effective treatment of this disease.