Effect of moxibustion on ureteral stent-related symptoms after ureteroscopic lithotripsy / 中国针灸

OBJECTIVES@#To observe the clinical efficacy of moxibustion combined with western medication on ureteral stent-related symptoms after ureteroscopic lithotripsy (URL).@*METHODS@#One hundred and fifty patients with upper urinary tract calculus implanted with ureteral stents after URL were randomly divided into a moxibustion group (50 cases, 1 case dropped out), a placebo moxibustion group (50 cases, 3 cases dropped out) and a blank control group (50 cases). No intervention was performed in the blank control group. On the basis of oral administration with tamsulosin hydrochloride sustained release capsule (starting from the first day after surgery, once a day, 0.2 mg each time, continuously for 4 weeks), in the moxibustion group, moxibustion was operated at Guanyuan (CV 4) and bilateral Shenshu (BL 23); the sham-moxibustion was delivered at the same acupoints in the placebo moxibustion group, once daily, 6 times a week, for 15 min in each treatment. The duration of treatment was 4 weeks. Before treatment, and after 1, 2 and 4 weeks of treatment, the scores of lower urinary tract symptoms, body pain, general health, work performance and satisfaction of sexual matters were compared among the 3 groups. The tract calculus clearance rate, urinary infection and the oral administration of painkillers were compared after 4 weeks of treatment in the 3 groups.@*RESULTS@#The scores of lower urinary tract symptoms, body pain and general health after 1 week of treatment, and the scores of lower urinary tract symptoms, body pain, general health and work performance after 2 and 4 weeks of treatment were lower than those before treatment in the 3 groups (P<0.01). The scores of lower urinary tract symptoms and body pain in the moxibustion group after 1, 2 and 4 weeks of treatment were lower than those in the blank control group and the placebo moxibustion group (P<0.01, P<0.05) respectively. The score of general health in the moxibustion group was lower than that in the blank control group after 1 week of treatment (P<0.01), and lower than those of the blank control group and the placebo moxibustion group after 2 and 4 weeks of treatment (P<0.01, P<0.05). Regarding the score of work performance, it was lower in the moxibustion group after 1 and 2 weeks of treatment compared with those in the blank control group (P<0.05, P<0.01), and lower than those of the blank control group and the placebo moxibustion group after 4 weeks of treatment (P<0.01, P<0.05). The tract calculus clearance rate in the moxibustion group was 95.9% (47/49), higher than that in the blank control group (80.0%, 40/50, P<0.05). The proportion of oral administration of painkillers in the moxibustion group (28.6%, 14/49) and the placebo moxibustion group (40.4%, 19/47) was lower than that in the blank control group (76.0%, 38/50, P<0.01) respectively.@*CONCLUSIONS@#Moxibustion combined with western medication relieves lower urinary tract symptoms and body pain, and accelerate the recovery of general health and work performance in the patients after URL.

Enlightenment from foreign acquisition of new drugs innovated in China / 国际药学研究杂志

Seven new drugs innovated in China were acquired by multinational pharmaceutical companies in 2013,most of which were in pre-clinical or clinical research stage. This reflects that the current R&D capabilities of drug innovation in China have gradually caught up with the international standards and have been internationally recognized. On the other hand,it shows that there is still a big gap in the overall competitiveness of the pharmaceutical industry between China and the international counterparts. Some suggestions are proposed,including the cultivation of the leading pharmaceutical companies,the appropriate subsidies to domestic enterprises for new drug transformation,the improvement for personnel training and the supports to the small and medium enterprises.

Exploration of approaches to adjusting brand-name drug prices in Mainland of China: based on comparison and analysis of some brand-name drug prices of Mainland and Taiwan, China / 中华医学杂志(英文版)

<p><b>BACKGROUND</b>Under the circumstance of the New Medical Reform in Mainland of China, lowering drug prices has become an approach to relieving increase of medical expenses, and lowering brand-name medication price is a key strategy. This study, by comparing and analyzing brand-name medication prices between Mainland of China and Taiwan, explores how to adjust brand-name medication prices in Mainland of China in the consideration of the drug administrative strategies in Taiwan.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>By selecting brand-name drug with generic name and dose types matched in Mainland and Taiwan, calculate the average unit price and standard deviation and test it with the paired t-test. In the mean time, drug administrative strategies between Mainland and Taiwan are also compared systematically.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Among the 70 brand-name medications with generic names and matched dose types, 54 are at higher prices in Mainland of China than Taiwan, which is statistically significant in t-test. Also, among the 47 medications with all of matched generic names, dose types, and manufacturing enterprises, 38 are at higher prices in Mainland than Taiwan, and the gap is also statistically significant in t-test. In Mainland of China, brand-name medication took cost-plus pricing and price-based price adjustment, while in Taiwan, brand-name medication took internal and external reference pricing and market-based price adjustment.</p><p><b>CONCLUSIONS</b>Brand-name drug prices were higher in Mainland of China than in Taiwan. The adjustment strategies of drug prices are scientific in Taiwan and are worth reference by Mainland of China.</p>

Liuwei dihuang pills enhance the effect of Western medicine in treating type 2 diabetes: A meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials / 中国结合医学杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To perform meta-analyses evaluating the efficacy of adding Liuwei Dihuang Pills (, LDP) to Western medicine in improving treatment outcomes for type 2 diabetes.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Medline, PubMed, Cochrane Library, and Chinese databases, including the Chinese National Knowledge Infrastructure were searched to identify eligible studies; i.e., if the study involved a randomized clinical trial in which the experimental group combined LDP with Western drugs and the control group used the corresponding Western drugs alone to treat type 2 diabetes. Outcomes were measured in terms of fasting blood glucose (FBG), postprandial blood glucose (2hPG) and HbA1c level. Efficacy was also measured by using control and response rates. The combined odds ratio (OR), mean difference (MD), and 95% confidence intervals (95% CI) were calculated.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Studies included in the analysis were less adequate than expected in terms of methodological quality. A total of 1,609 patients from 18 studies were included. We found that adding LDP can lower patients' FBG (MD=0.54 mmol/L, 95% CI [0.15, 0.93], P=0.007), 2hPG (MD=1.05 mmol/L, 95% CI [0.29, 1.81], P<0.01) and HbA1c (MD=0.23, 95% CI [0.02, 0.45], P=0.008). There were also improvements in treatment response rates (OR=3.41, 95% CI [2.38, 4.90], P<0.01) and control rates (OR=2.47, 95% CI [1.91, 3.20], P<0.01).</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>Adding LDP to Western medicine might improve treatment outcomes of diabetes, including FBG, 2hPG, response rates and control rates.</p>

Research into evidence-based literatures on the Chinese patent medicines on the National Essential Medicine List / 中国药学杂志

OBJECTIVE: To examine the characteristics of the evidence-based clinical literatures regarding the Chinese patent medicines on the National Essential Medicine List of China (2009 Edition) so as to lay a foundation for the establishment of an evidence-based pharmaceutical review system for the Chinese patent medicines oriented at treating TCM-syndromes. METHODS: The evidence-based literatures on Chinese patent medicines were categorized, and their characteristics were analyzed concerning the distribution of the literatures according to the five levels of evidence, the concentration of the diseases under treatment, and chronological changes; in accordance with the Drug Registration Regulation, the differences among these literatures were explored. RESULTS: With regard to the literatures on some Chinese patent medicines, there were a large proportion of randomized controlled trials (RCTs), with a rapid increase in the number of the literatures in recent years and a clear focus on certain diseases. By contrast, some other Chinese patent medicines had a high proportion of before-after studies and empirical introductions as well as a low concentration of diseases under treatment. CONCLUSION: The Chinese patent medicines can be divided into two categories, namely, the modern branch and the traditional branch. While the disease-oriented evidence-based review system can be applied to the evaluation of the literatures on some patent medicines in the modern branch, it does not fit the traditional branch. Therefore, in order to reflect the characteristics of the Chinese patent medicines, a TCM-syndrome-oriented evidence-based review system has to be established. Copyright 2012 by the Chinese Pharmaceutical Association.

Fingerprint analysis of Radix Glycyrrhizae by fast HPLC / 中国中药杂志

The objective of this paper is to develop a fast analysis method to determine fingerprints of Radix Glycyrrhizae from different areas of China for identification and quality control. The experiments were carried out under following conditions: Agilent Eclipse Plus C18 (4.6 mm x 50 mm, 1.8 microm) column, acetonitrile and 0. 05% phosphoric acid solution as the mobile phases with gradient elution, flow rate 1.0 mL x min(-1), analysis time 11 min. The run time of the method was obviously decreased from 36 minutes to 11 minutes compared with routine HPLC method. The cluster analyses of the fingerprints of the 70 samples were performed by SPSS. The results showed that all samples were classified into 2 groups, 59 Glycyrrhiza uralensis as well as 11 G. inflata. Three compounds, liquiritin apioside, liquiritin and glycyrrhiza acid should be considered as effective references for quality control of Radix Glycyrrhizae. This method can be used widely for identification and quality control of Radix Glycyrrhizae.