Safety of Thread Embedding Acupuncture Therapy:A Systematic Review

Objective To evaluate the safety of thread embedding acupuncture therapy(TEAT)and discuss the prevention and treatment of some adverse events(AEs).Methods Review of databases,including China National Knowledge Infrastructure(CNKI),CBMdisc,Wanfang,VIP databases and English literature published in PubMed,MEDLINE,EMBASE and Web of Science,were searched from their inception to January 2020,randomized controlled trials(RCTs)and case reports in which AEs with TEAT were included.Cochrane Collaboration’s tool and RevMan V.5.3.3 software were used to evaluate the quality of the studies.Results A total of 61 studies(45 RCTs and 16 case reports)with 620 cases of AEs were included in this review.These studies were published in two countries:China and South Korea.Twenty eight kinds of AEs were summarized.The most common AEs were induration,bleeding and ecchymosis,redness and swelling,fever,and pain.They were accounted for 75.35%(425/564)in the review,and most of them were mild.The rarest AEs were epilepsy,irregular menstruation,skin ulcer,thread malabsorption,and fat liquefaction,with 1 case each.But not all of them had clear causal relationship with TEAT.Most of the AEs were local reactions[with incidence of 9.83%(480/4,882)]and systemic reactions accounted for only 1.27%(62/4,882).Although the included studies showed that AEs were very commonly encountered(11.09%),only 5 cases of severe AEs reported from 2013 to 2017(0.1%)by using catgut thread,which are rarely seen nowdays with the wide use of new absorbable surgical suture.All of the severe AEs were recovered after symptomatic treatment with no sequelae.Conclusions The evidence showed that TEAT is a relatively safe and convenient therapy especially since application of new absorbable surgical suture.Improving practitioner skills,regulating operations,and paying attention to the patients’conditions may reduce the incidence of AEs and improve safety of TEAT.

Screening of acupuncture treatment for simple obesity

Objective:Observe the advantages and characteristics of Acupuncture therapy and Point Thread Embedding therapy in the treatment of simple obesity and to select the superior treatment schemes.Methods:on the basis of syndrome differentiation,acupuncture and Point Thread Embedding therapy were adopted respectively for 3 courses of treatment.Observe the changes of body weight and abdomen/waist/hip circumference in different stages of treatment and evaluate the curative effect.Results:Both acupuncture and Point Thread Embedding could lessen the weight and the abdomen/waist/hip circumference of simple obesity.Acupuncture and Point Thread Embedding can not only reduce body weight,but also improve clinical symptoms of simple obesity.The effect rate of clinical symptoms is better than that of weight(P<0.05);The efficiency of Point Thread Embedding group is better than that of Acupuncture group(P<0.05).There was no significant weight loss from the second course of treatment especially in acupuncture group(P>0.05).Conclusion:Acupuncture and Point Thread Embedding in the treatment of simple obesity focus more on the adjustment of body shape and constitution of obese patients;Compare with acupuncture treatment,point thread embedding group had a slower onset time and a longer duration of curative effect while acupuncture group had a faster onset time but a shorter duration.When the body weight is reduced to 5kg,the plateau stage occurs.Point Thread Embedding therapy is easier to be popularized and applied in clinic Because of its convenient and stable therapeutic effect.