Treatment of premature ovarian failure by bushen huoxue recipe combined estrogen and progesterone: a clinical research / 中国中西医结合杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To observe the clinical efficacy of bushen huoxue recipe (BHR) combined estrogen and progesterone in treating premature ovarian failure (POF), and to explore an effective treatment program of POF by integrative medicine.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Totally 265 POF patients were randomly assigned to 3 groups, i.e., Group I (86 cases, treated by BHR),Group II (88 cases,treated by conjugated estrogens and medroxyprogesterone acetate), and Group III (91 cases,treated by BHR +conjugated estrogens and medroxyprogesterone acetate). The therapeutic course for each group was 6 months. The main symptoms (including menstrual cycle, hectic fever, night sweat, vaginal dryness, and low libido), laboratory indices [including follicle stimulating hormone (FSH), luteotropic hormone (LH), estradiol (E2), and inhibin B (INH-B)], B-ultrasound indicators (including endometrial thickness, ovarian volume, and antral follicle count), and adverse reactions were observed in the three groups at the end of treatment and 6 months after treatment.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Compared with before treatment, the main symptoms, laboratory indices, and B-ultrasound indicators were statistically improved in the three groups at the end of treatment and 6 months after treatment (P <0.05, P <0.01). Better effects were obtained in Group III in improving symptoms of the menstrual cycle, vaginal dryness, and low libido, lowering levels of FSH and LH, elevating levels of E2and INH-B, and ameliorating the endometrial thickness, the ovarian volume, and the antral follicle count (P <0.05, P <0.01). No obvious adverse reaction occurred in the three groups.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>BHR combined estrogen and progesterone showed better clinical efficacy than use of BHR or estrogen/progesterone alone, indicating it was an effective treatment program for POF.</p>

Effects of acupuncture on the luteal function of rats with dysfunctional embryo implantation / 中国针灸

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To observe the influence of acupuncture on the luteal function of rats with dysfunctional embryo implantation, and investigate its mechanism.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>The early pregnant female rats were randomly divided into a normal control group, a model group, an acupoint group and a non-acupoint group. The model rats with dysfunctional embryo implantation were established with Mifepristone. For acupuncture treatment, bilateral "Housanli" (ST 36) and "Sanyinjiao" (SP 6) were selected in the acupoint group, while the points around the acupoint were used in the non-acupoint group. In this experiment, the levels of luteinizing hormone (LH), estrodiol (Es) and progesterone (P) in serum were tested with radioimmunity method, the expression of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) in ovary was examined with immunohistochemical assay and Western-blot, and also, the mRNA expression of VEGF and luteinizing hormone receptor (LHR) in ovary were detected with RT-PCR.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>The levels of LH and P in serum, as well as the expression of VEGF, VEGF mRNA and LHR mRNA in ovary in the acupoint group were significantly higher than those in the model group and the non-acupoint group (P < 0.05), but there was no obvious difference from that of the normal control group.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>Acupuncturing at "Housanli" (ST 36) and "Sanyinjiao" (SP 6) can increase the levels of LH and P in the serum, and up-regulate the expression of VEGF, VEGF mRNA and LHR mRNA in ovary, which may enhance the luteal function of rats with dysfunctional embryo implantation and improve its embryo implantation.</p>