Clinical research on Tai Chi:a review of health benefits

Tai Chi,a traditional Chinese martial art and health exercise,has gained significant global attention and recognition.The clinical benefits of Tai Chi have been studied extensively in recent decades.We conducted a systematic search of PubMed,Web of Science,EMBASE databases,and the China National Knowledge Infrastructure,identifying and reviewing 241 clinical trials on the benefits of Tai Chi from their inception to June 1,2023.Most of these studies have consistently demonstrated the positive impact of Tai Chi on balance,cognitive function,mood regulation,sleep quality,pain relief,cardiorespiratory function,and overall health.In the future,the key to fostering the ongoing development of this field lies in comprehensive research on standardized study designs and reporting,the scope of Tai Chi applications,and the core factors influencing its efficacy.

Scientific exploration and hypotheses concerning the meridian system in traditional Chinese medicine

The meridian theory is an important component of traditional Chinese medicine,playing a crucial role in disease diagnosis,treatment,and health preservation.Serving as the media for the effects of acupuncture,moxibustion,herbal medicine,and acupressure massage,meridians exert undeniable impact on the human body.However,the essence of meridians remains a topic of debate.Recent research has primarily focused on their anatomical structures,leading to numerous hypotheses.Simultaneously,other researchers have approached this subject from an energetic perspective,discovering information interactions within the meridian system.These findings suggest that meridians possess both physical and information dimensions,indicating that a singular approach to their study is insufficient.To bridge this gap,a shift from purely structural research toward an exploration of the information aspects of meridians is necessary.By integrating this information approach with traditional meridian theory,it may be possible to develop a new,modernized meridian theory that is aligned with contemporary concepts,making it more accessible and applicable in clinical settings.

A central analgesic mechanism of acupuncture for migraine An ongoing functional MRI study

Shaoyang acupoints are the most frequently used in migraine treatment. However, the central anal- gesic mechanism remains poorly understood. Studies have demonstrated that single stimulus of the verum acupuncture in healthy subjects can induce significant connectivity or activity changes in pain- related central networks compared with sham acupuncture. However, these findings are not indicative of the central analgesic mechanism of acupuncture at Shaoyang acupoints. Thus, we recruited 100 migraine sufferers and randomly assigned them into five groups： Shaoyang uncommon acupoint, Shaoyang common acupoint, Yangming uncommon acupoint, non-acupoint control, and blank control groups. Subjects were subjected to evaluation of curative effects and functional MRI prior to and after 10 and 20 acupuncture treatments. All subjects were diagnosed by physicians and enrolled following clinical physical examination. Subjects were observed during 1-4 weeks after inclusion. At the fifth week, the first clinical evaluation and resting functional MRI were conducted. The Shaoyang uncom- mon acupoint, Shaoyang common acupoint, Yangming uncommon acupoint, and non-acupoint control grousp then were treated with acupuncture, five times per week, 20 times in total over 4 weeks. The second and third clinical evaluations and resting functional MRI screenings were conducted following 10 and 20 acupuncture treatments. The blank control group was observed during the 5 to 8 week pe- riod, followed by clinical evaluation and resting functional MRI. The aim of this study was to examine changes in brain functional activity and central networks in subjects with migraine undergoing acu- puncture at Shaoyang uncommon acupoints. This study provides a further explanation of the central analgesic mechanism by which acupuncture at Shaoyang acupoints treats migraine,

Trigger points and sensitized acupoints:same book,different covers?

Acupoints and trigger points in traditional Chinese medicine represent two different minimally invasive therapy systems-based,respectively,on traditional acupuncture and dry needles.Many studies argue that trigger points and traditional acupoints are conceptually similar because they generally have identical locations on the human body.However,whether trigger points contribute to the formation of the traditional acupuncture technique is controversial.Although many relevant studies have been conducted,this controversy continues to hinder the development of both disciplines.Recently,researchers of Chinese acupuncture have proposed the“acupoint sensitization”theory,which postulates that traditional acupoints may be sensitized by diseases,environments,and therapies.This turns them into a“sensitized state.”Recent studies suggest that trigger points and sensitized acupoints share similar biological properties.To clarify the above-mentioned confusion,we reviewed relevant studies on these two concepts and attempted to analyze their relationship.In this paper,we provide a general summary of acupoint sensitization theory and sensitized acupoints.We then compare trigger points with sensitized acupoints by categorizing their similarities and differences,including location and range,pathological morphology,pain perception,surface temperature effects,and bioelectrical properties.We believe that,because trigger points and sensitized acupoints have many shared properties,they might constitute“the same book with different covers.”

Functional brain imaging studies on specificity of meridian and acupoints

At present, the specificity of meridians and acupoints has been studied using functional brain imaging techniques from many standpoints, including meridians, acupoints, and sham acupoints, as well as different meridians and acupoints, coordination of acupoints, and factors influencing meridian and acupoint specificity Preliminary experimental data have demonstrated that acupuncture at meridians and acupoints is specific with regard to brain neural information. However, research findings are contradictory, which may be related to brain functional complexity, resolution of functional brain imaging techniques, and experimental design. Future studies should further improve study method, and should strictly control experimental conditions to better analyze experimental data and acquire more beneficial data. Because of its many advantages, the functional brain imaging technique is a promising method for studying meridian and acupoint specificity.

Values of blink reflex and electroneurography in diagnosis of facial paralysis

BACKGROUND： The electrophysiological test was mainly achieved by the reaction of nerve fiber to electrical stimulus, usually expressed by the amplitude and latency. Blink reflex and electroneurography （ENOG） are widely applied in facial paralysis, the amplitude would step down, and the latency would prolong when the facial nerve was injured. OBJECTIVE： To compare the value of blink reflex and ENOG in the diagnosis of facial paralysis （Bell＇s palsy）. DESIGN： A controlled trial. SETTINGS： Affiliated Hospital, Chengdu University of Traditional Chinese Medicine; West China Hospital of Sichuan University; Mianyang Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine; Sichuan People＇s Hospital. PARTICIPANTS： The patients who had finished the tests of blink reflex （n =207） and ENOG （n =205） were selected from the Affiliated Hospital, Chengdu University of Traditional Chinese Medicine; West China Hospital of Sichuan University; Mianyang Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine; Sichuan People＇s Hospital from September 2001 to July 2003. After treatment for 4 weeks, the patients finished tests of blink reflex （n =207） and ENOG （n =205） were randomly divided into primary treatment group （n =68, 69）, acupuncture group （n =71, 66） and comprehensive treatment group （n =68, 70）, respectively. Approval was obtained from the ethic committee of hospital. METHODS： Patients in the primary treatment group and acupuncture group were treated with western medicine, acupuncture and moxibustion alone respectively, and those in the comprehensive treatment group were treated with acupuncture and moxibustion based on western medicine. The whole period of treatment was 4 weeks. The tests of blink reflex and ENOG were carried out using Japanese light and electricity MEB-2200 electromyogram/induced potential instrument for once before and after treatment respectively. The normal value of the latency period of wave RI was within 13 ms, and the difference was 1 - 1.2 ms between the left and right sides. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES： The latency of wave RI of blink reflect and the latency and wave amplitude of ENOG on the affected and healthy sides before and after treatment were observed. RESULTS： Totally 207 and 205 patients received tests of blink reflex and ENOG, but 17 and 16 cases respectively did not finish the second measurement, finally 190 and 189 cases were involved in the analysis of results. The latencies of wave R 1 on the affected side after treatment were significantly longer than those before treatment （t = - 6.253, P 〈 0.01）; The latencies of wave RI on the normal side were in the normal range before and after treatment; The latencies of wave RI before treatment on the affected side was significantly longer than that on the normal side （t =- 5.896, P 〈 0.01）, but there were no significant differences between the affected and normal sides after treatment （P 〉 0.05）. It was indicated that the latencies of wave RI on the affected side had restored normally, and the blink reflex was improved obviously after treatment. The latency of ENOG on the affected side before treatment was significantly prolonged as compared with that on the normal side （t =2.247, P 〈 0.01）; After treatment, the difference between the affected and normal side became smaller, but remarkable significance still existed （t =10.810, P 〈 0.01）. In spite of the obvious improvement of affected side before and after treatment, there were still significant differences （t =- 8.110, P 〈 0.05）. The wave amplitude on the affected side was decreased after treatment, which was not significantly different from that before treatment （P 〉0.05）. CONCLUSION： After treatment of facial paralysis, blink reflect was greatly improved, there was an obvious hysteresis in the latency of ENOG. Therefore, blink reflect was better than ENOG in the early diagnosis, while ENOG was suitable for evaluating the prognosis. The ENOG examination was better than blink reflex at middle and late period.

A review of acupuncture and moxibustion in treating children with cerebral palsy sitting disorder

Cerebral palsy is one of the important factors in children's disability.Patients'seat dysfunction has a serious impact on their daily life and their family.However,there is currently no effective treatment for the cerebral palsy seat dysfunction.So,it is of importance to search a new way to make a breakthrough.Acupuncture has significant advantages in the treatment of functional disorders.In this paper,the literature about clinical research of acupuncture treatment of cerebral palsy seat dysfunction are summarized.We have carried on the mechanism analysis of sports medicine respectively from three angles,including traditional Chinese medicine,western medicine and traditional Chinese and western medicine combined with sports medicine.We conclude that acupuncturing acupoints on Du meridian,Beishu points and Jiaji points has significant effect on the function of sitting unable children with cerebral palsy,such as strengthening the spleen,tonifying the kidney and promoting Yangqi and stimulating the sensory nerve and so on.Acupuncturing points for the treatment of cerebral palsy provides a lot of inspiration for human physiology research in the future and clinical treatment of neurological diseases.

Acupuncture therapy for angina pectoris:a systematic review

OBJECTIVE： To assess the effectiveness and safety of acupuncture therapy for angina pectoris. METHODS： Randomized controlled trials （RCTs） concerned with acupuncture treatment of angina pectoris were identified by searching Academic Source Premier, MEDLINE, Science Citation Index Expanded, and three Chinese databases （China biol- ogy medicine database, China national knowledge infrastructure, and VlP database for Chinese techni- cal periodicals）. The valid data were extracted in ac- cordance with our inclusion and exclusion criteria. The main outcomes of the included studies were synthesized using Revman 5.1. RESULTS： Twenty-one articles on 16 individual studies were included and evaluated as having high or moderate risk of bias according to the stan- dards of the Cochrane Collaboration. Meta-analysis indicated that acupuncture combined with conven- tional drugs （ACCD） was superior to conventional drugs alone in reducing the incidence of acute myocardial infarction （AMI） [0R=0.18, 95%CI （0.04,0.84）, P=0.03]. Moreover, ACCD was superior to con- ventional drugs in the relief of angina symptoms [0R=4.23, 95%C/（2.73, 6..56）, P〈0.00001], and im- provement of electrocardiography （ECG） [0R=2.61, 95%C/（1.83, 3.73）, P〈0.00001]. Acupuncture by it- self was also superior to conventional drugs for angi- na symptoms [0R=3.59, 95%C/（1.76, 7.92）, P=0.0004] and ECG improvement [0R=3.07, 95%C/（1.54, 6.10）, P=0.001]. ACCD was superior to conventional drugs in shortening the time to onset of angina relief [WMD=-1.40, 95% CI （-1.65, -1.15）, P〈 0.00001]. However, the time to onset was signifi- cantly longer for acupuncture treatment than for conventional treatment alone [WMD=2A3, 95%O （1.63, 3.23）, P〈0.000 01]. CONCLUSION： ACCD reduced the occurrence of AMI, and both acupuncture and ACCD relieved an- gina symptoms and improved ECG. However, com- pared with conventional treatment, acupuncture showed a longer delay before its onset of action. This indicates that acupuncture is not suitable for emergency treatment of heart attack. Owing to the poor quality of the current evidence, the findings of this systematic review need to be verified by more RCTs to enhance statistical power.

Different manual manipulations and electrical parameters exert different therapeutic effects of acupuncture

Acupuncture is an important component part of Traditional Chinese Medicine(TCM). The therapeutic effects may be influenced by a variety of factors.Stimulation quantity is one of the factors for achieving good therapeutic effects in acupuncture practice. With the development of science and technology, besides the influence of manual manipulations, the parameters adopted for electroacupuncture have become the benchmark of stimulation quantity. This study, by referring to the related literatures, is designed to explore the influence of manual manipulations and electrical parameters on therapeutic effects of acupuncture. The results from the present study show that different manualmanipulations and electrical parameters may exert different therapeutic effects of acupuncture, which are closely related to the characteristics of diseases.Different manual manipulations and electrical parameters should be adopted according to syndrome differentiation of TCM. This is very important in acupuncture treatment.

Case-based learning in education of Traditional Chinese Medicine: a systematic review

OBJECTIVE:To assess the effect of case-based learning(CBL)in the education of Traditional Chinese Medicine(TCM).METHODS:The studies concerning TCM courses designed with CBL were included by searching the databases of EBSCO,Pubmed,Science Citation Index,China National Knowledge Infrastructure,Chongqing VIP database.The valid data was extracted in accordance with the included criteria.The quality of the studies was assessed with Gemma Flores-Masteo.RESULTS:A total of 22 articles were retrieved that met the selection criteria:one was of high quality;two were of low quality;the rest were categorized as moderate quality.The majority of the studiesdemonstrated the better effect produced by CBL,while a few studies showed no difference,compared with the didactic format.All included studies confirmed the favorable effect on learners'attitude,skills and ability.CONCLUSION:CBL showed the desirable results in achieving the goal of learning.Compared to didactic approach,it played a more active role in promoting students'competency.Since the quality of the articles on which the study was based was not so high,the findings still need further research to become substantiated.