ABSTRACT
<p><b>Background </b>: Menstrual migraine is more resistant to treatment than that of nonmenstrual episodes. Hormonal progesterone changes may cause <i>sui </i>(water/fluid) disturbance, in Kampo medicine terms. We therefore treated patients with menstrual migraine in which goshuyuto was ineffective, with the combination of goreisan and goshuyuto.<br><b>Subjects & Methods </b>: Subjects were 37 female patients with coldness (mean age 37 years, age range 23-48 years), whose migraine during their intra-menstrual periods was successfully treated with goshuyuto for 3 months. In order to treat migraine in the menstrual period, goreisan was added to goshuyuto from 1 week before onset, until the end of their menstrual period. <b>Results </b>: Among 37 patients, the treatment was effective in 26 patients (70%). Significant variables were found to be dull headache (p = 0.003), edema (p = 0.006), vertigo (p = 0.014) and oliguria (p = 0.014) during attacks, as well as worsening before rain (p = 0.004). <b>Conclusion </b>: The periodical combination of goreisan and goshuyuto seems to be effective in patients with menstrual migraine who report symptoms of <i>sui </i>disturbance, such as dull headache and oliguria during their attacks.</p>
ABSTRACT
<i><b>Objectives </b></i>: We evaluated the efficacy of tokishakuyakusan and kamishoyosan for patients who complained of feeling cold, and identified key symptoms that would predict positive treatment outcomes for coldness with these medicines.<br><i><b>Design </b></i>: A retrospective cohort study<br><i><b>Subjects and Methods </b></i>: The subjects were 188 patients who reported feeling cold. They were treated with tokishakuyakusan or kamishoyosan according to their <i>Sho </i>for more than one month. The relationships between improvement of cold sensation and 62 factors, including other symptoms noted at the first medical examination, were evaluated by means of cross-sectional analysis, followed by logistic regression.<br><i><b>Results </b></i>: The factors of coldness of the abdomen (odds ratio, 5.0), vertigo (7.7), dimness of sight (16) and blushing (5.6), without anger (0.11) or tinnitus (0.025), were found to be predictors of a positive effect with tokishakuyakusan treatment (p < 0.001). The factors of hot flushes (14), without coldness of the whole body (0.099), and faint feeling (0.21) were significant for kamishoyosan (p < 0.001). This suggests that kamishoyosan can improve subjective coldness of the extremities (AIC -8.64), especially of the legs (-2.23).<br><i><b>Conclusions </b></i>: Coldness in the abdomen was an important indicator for treatment with tokishakuyakusan, while coldness in the legs, but not in the whole body, was important in the case of kamishoyosan.
ABSTRACT
<b>Objectives</b> : Persistent coldness is a common complaint for which Kampo, traditional Japanese herbal medicine, is often tried, because there is no definition or objective measure of subjective coldness in Western medicine. The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of a common Kampo agent, tokishigyakukagoshuyushokyoto, and to identify key symptoms that would predict positive treatment outcomes for coldness.<br><b>Design</b> : A retrospective cohort study.<br><b>Setting</b> : 181 patients who complained of coldness without any organic abnormalities self-surveyed their health using a Kampo questionnaire database system on their first visit. Another 28 patients were assigned to verify the discriminatory predictability of treatment efficacy.<br><b>Interventions</b> : Patients were treated with extract product, 7.5 grams a day for a month.<br><b>Outcome measures</b> : Treatment efficacy as a binary response.<br><b>Results</b> : Frequency and severity scales (0 to 4) for coldness decreased from 3.2 ± 0.7 to 2.1 ± 0.1 (<i>p </i>< 0.01)and from 3.1 ± 0.7 to 2.2 ± 0.9 (<i>p </i>< 0.01), respectively. Improvements in both frequency and severity of coldness were observed in 74.0% of patients. The status of tenderness in the iliac region, without upset stom ach or depression, was obtained as an appropriate model for the prediction of treatment effect, and its discrimi natory predictability was calculated as 84.4%. The predictive accuracy of the model was validated with 82.1% for the 28 new patients.<br><b>Conclusions</b> : Coldness susceptible to tokishigyakukagoshuyushokyoto was very frequently accompanied by tenderness in iliac region, without upset stomach or depression.
ABSTRACT
We evaluated the efficacy of chotosan for headache patients via multiple regression analysis. The subjects were 46 patients with headache (31 migraine, 14 tension-type, and1combination headache), consisting of 1 3males and 33 females, mean age 48 years (range 19-77 years), who were treated with chotosan according to their Sho (symptoms) for more than1month. The relationships between the improvement of headache and 38 factors, including age, sex, height, body weight, hypertension and other symptoms noted upon first medical examination, were examined through multi-dimensional cross-sectional analysis. Morning headache, dizziness, insomnia, body weight, tinnitus and vasodilatation of sublingual veins were significant factors. Morning headache is traditionally an indication for the use of chotosan, and our results support its efficacy for this purpose. Three factors, i.e. morning headache, vasodilatation of sublingual veins and stiff shoulder, were the best subset of explanatory variables. Stiff shoulder is a key symptom for the application of chotosan, while stiffness in the back is a key symptom for the application of yokukansan.
Subject(s)
HeadacheABSTRACT
We evaluated the efficacy of yokukansan-based prescriptions for patients with headache. Forty-five patients with headache (34 migraine, 6 tension-type, and 5 combined headaches), or 6 males and 39 females, mean age 38 (25 to 68) years were treated with yokukansan-based prescriptions according to their Sho diagnosis, for 1 to 24 months. Relationships between headache improvement, and 31 factors including age, sex, height, body weight and other symptoms at first examination, were qualified with multi-dimensional analysis. Factors such as painful eye sensation, back stiffness, eyestrain and irritability were significant indicators of headache improvement. Three of these factors (painful eye sensation, back stiffness and irritability) were the best subset of explanatory variables. Yokukansan-based prescriptions seemed to be effective for “liver-related” headache, and were thought to be useful to relieve a triggering or worsening of headache factors. And to our knowledge, this is the first paper to propose the importance of examinations of the back, when considering yokukansan-based prescriptions.
Subject(s)
Headache , Back , PrescriptionsABSTRACT
The aim of this study was to examine the effects of fibroblast growth factor-2 (FGF-2) on cancer cell invasion and on fibroblast proliferation in an <i>in vitro</i> model of invasion. Three kinds of human oral squamous cell carcinoma cell lines with different invasive activity were used: OSC-20, OSC-19 (lower invasive type), and HOC313 (higher invasive type). FGF-2 and its high-affinity receptors FGFR-1 and FGFR-2 were detected by western blotting. The expression of FGF-2 and FGFRs mRNA was examined in cultured human oral squamous cell carcinoma cells by reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). Furthermore, recombinant human FGF-2 (rhFGF-2) was reacted with each cell line, and the invasion rate was determined by invasion assay. We also observed the behavior of cancer cell invasion in the collagen gel invasion model in the presence or absence of FGF-2-neutralizing antibody (anti-FGF-2). HOC313 cells showed higher expression of FGF-2 than OSC-20 and OSC-19 cells. The addition of rhFGF-2 promoted not only the proliferation of fibroblasts, but also the invasion of all cancer cell lines. In contrast, the addition of anti-FGF-2 completely inhibited the invasion of OSC-20 and OSC-19 cells. These results suggest that a higher invasiveness of squamous carcinoma cells is associated with higher production of FGF-2, which acts in an autocrine fashion to promote cancer cell invasion, and in a paracrine fashion to promote fibroblast proliferation.
ABSTRACT
This study was performed to clarify whether local anesthesia or sympathetic ganglion block abolishes the effects of electrical acupuncture (EA) on the autonomic nervous system or not.<br>Twelve healthy adult volunteers and 24 patients are divided into the following three experimental groups of each 12. EA was performed to the traditional acupuncture points on the meridians (H7; SHENMEN and CX4; HSIMEN). (1) In control group, only EA was performed. (2) In stellate ganglion block (SGB) group, EA was performed after unilateral SGB. (3) In local anesthesia (LA) group, EA was performed after local anesthesia on the same acupuncture points. The measured parameters on the autonomic nervous system functions were heart rates, R-R intervals in ECG, blood pressure and deep tissue temperature.<br>Results are as follows; Means of heart rate decreased significantly by EA in both control and SGB groups. Systolic blood pressure, diastolic blood pressure and RR-CV showed no significant changes by EA in all groups. Deep tissue temperature of the anterior forearm ipsilateral to the stimulation side decreased significantly by EA in SGB group. Deep tissure temperature of the anterior forearm contralateral to the stimuli decreased significantly by EA in both control and SGB groups. In LA group, however, all parameters were not changed by EA.<br>In summary, the effects of electrical acupuncture on the autonomic nervous system were not much different between control and SGB groups. It seems that one side of stellate ganglion block dose not interfere with the effects of acupuncture. On the other hand, any changes on the autonomic nervous system by electrical acupuncture were not observed in LA group. The fact showed that local anesthesia abolishes the effects of acupuncture on site. Local anesthesia blocks peripheral nerves and nerve endings. Therefore, we conclude that the effects of acupuncture on the autonomic nervous system are transmitted through the peripheral nerves, especially through the sensory nerves.
ABSTRACT
The outstanding feature of the drift of population observed in our country of late is understood in terms of the population exodus from rural areas into urban or industrial areas, which brings about. a conspicuous decrease in rural population especially in that of the younger working age bracket. with a view to clarifying an aspect of such wide-ranging migration of population, a study was made in the three remote mountain villages in the Chilbu District, where people are living on an extremely low economic level Investigation conducted for eacch respective economic level revealed an even. abnormally advanced decrease in the population of such younger generation, far advanced than in average rural areas. Thus the unfavorable topogra-phical conditions, lack of cultivating lands, low income, etc.were considered to be responsible for the acceleration of such population exodus. Attention was also drawn to the fact that not only the surplus labor power but even many of the eldest sons. who are the successors to their fathers' occupations are turning to urban areas for employ-ment, threatening the possibility of the replenishment of agricultural labor power and the development of agricultural economics, as well as the future reproduction of population in rural areas.