ZHANG Yunling's Experience in the Treatment of Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis from Emphasis on both Spleen and Kidney / 中医杂志

This paper summarized Professor ZHANG Yunling's experience in the treatment of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis （ALS） from emphasis on both spleen and kidney. It is considered that the characteristic of ALS manifested as overlap of atrophy-flaccidity disease and convulsive disease， and the core pathogenesis are the deficiency of spleen and kidney and the inner pathogenic qi. ZHANG advocated that ALS should be treated from tonifying both the spleen and kidney， as strong spleen and kidney led the latent pathogen at peace. Usually applied Huangqi （Astragalus mongholicus）， Baizhu （Atractylodes macrocephala） combined with Taizishen （Pseudostellaria heterophylla）， fried Yiyiren （Coix lacryma-jobi）， Doukou （Myristica fragrans） and Sharen （Wurfbainia villosa） to tonify the middle and replenish qi， ascend lucidity and descend turbidity to invigorate the spleen； Roucongrong （Cistanche deserticola）， Tusizi （Cuscuta chinensis） combined with Shanyao （Dioscorea oppositifolia）， Shanzhuyu （Cornus officinalis） and prepared Dihuang （Rehmannia glutinosa） are used to support the fire and nourish the water， so as to replenish the spleen. The empirical formula regarded invigorateing the spleen and replenishing the kidney as the core therapeutic principle throughout the treatment of the whole process， which aimed at extinguishing inner wind and pacifying latent pathogen when treating the root.

Herbal Textural Research on Treatment of Headache Based on Syndrome Differentiation / 中国实验方剂学杂志

ObjectiveTo summarize the thinking of treatment of headache based on syndrome differentiation by reviewing the literature of materia medica in the past dynasties， so as to guide the clinical practice. MethodAll the literature of materia medica in the Chinese Medical Dictionary， involving 76 works from Han to Qing Dynasties， were searched， and the information of the herbs for treating headache was extracted. According to Chinese Materia Medica （11th Edition） and Pharmacopoeia of the People's Republic of China （2020 Edition）， the nature， taste， and meridian tropism of the selected herbs were statistically analyzed， and the syndrome elements of headache were classified and counted. In addition， the contents of syndrome differentiation and treatment of headache by different herbs were extracted. ResultFrom the 76 monographs of materia medica in the past dynasties， 114 herbs for treating headache were selected. The herbs mainly had cold or warm nature， pungent or bitter taste， and tropism to the lung and live meridians. The syndrome elements of headache treated by the herbs mainly included wind attack， fire disturbance， turbid obstruction， stagnation， cold coagulation， and healthy Qi deficiency. ConclusionHeadache is mainly treated with the herbs with the effects of dispelling pathogenic wind， clearing heat and purging fire， eliminating phlegm and resolving dampness， regulating Qi movement and activating blood， warming Yang and dispelling cold， and tonifying deficiency and reinforcing healthy Qi， and the herbs are often used in combinations. Headache is treated following the principles of dispelling wind and pathogen， regulating Qi and blood， and tonifying deficiency and purging excess， which is in line with the laws of obstruction and nutrient deficiency causing pain.

Thought of Treatment of Orifices Based on Correspondence Between Drugs and Symptoms in Chinese Herbal Classics in Past Dynasties / 中国实验方剂学杂志

ObjectiveTo discuss the thought of treatment of orifices in the Chinese herbal classics in the past dynasties based on the correspondence between drugs and symptoms to guide the clinical treatment based on syndrome differentiation. MethodAll the literature data of Chinese herbal classics were retrieved from the database of the Chinese Medical Dictionary， involving 76 works of Chinese herbal classics and covering representative works from the Han dynasty to the Ming and Qing dynasties. The information on Chines herbal drugs for the treatment of orifices was collected and sorted out. According to Chinese Materia Medica （11th Edition） and Pharmacopoeia of the People's Republic of China （2020 Edition）， the nature， flavor， and meridian tropism of the selected Chinese herbal drugs were statistically analyzed. The pathogenesis elements in the treatment of orifices were classified and counted， and the contents of syndrome differentiation and treatment in various Chinese herbal classics were extracted. ResultIn 76 Chinese herbal classics in the past dynasties， 93 Chinese herbal drugs for the treatment of orifices were selected. The nature of drugs was mainly warm， followed by cold and mild. The flavor was mainly pungent， followed by bitter and sweet. In terms of meridian tropism， drugs mainly acted on the lung meridian， followed by stomach， heart， liver， spleen， and kidney meridians. The pathogenesis elements of orifices could be divided into six categories， i.e.， wind invasion， turbid obstruction and Qi stagnation， water and dampness stagnation， blood stasis and collaterals blockage， heat and toxin damage， deficiency of vital Qi and cold coagulation. ConclusionOrifices are mainly treated with drugs effective in dispelling wind and pathogenic factors， resolving turbidity and removing stagnation， inducing diuresis and eliminating dampness， promoting blood circulation and dredging collaterals， clearing heat and purging fire， tonifying deficiency and dispelling cold， which are used in combination. Eliminating pathogenic factors and dredging， tonifying deficiency and purging excess are the main characteristics of treatment of orifices based on syndrome differentiation， which is in line with the physiological dysfunction state of orifices in losing the function， evil Qi blockage and healthy Qi deficiency.

Mixed methods research in complementary and alternative medicine: a scoping review.

OBJECTIVE: To update the current characteristics about the scope and quality of mixed methods research (MMR) in complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) after nearly 10 years. METHODS: A 5-stage approach for conducting a scoping review was adopted. Articles published on the top 10 journals in CAM with the highest impact factor in 2020 were screened for MMR. Information of included articles were extracted, and then synthesized to illustrate the current state. Methodological quality was evaluated according to the Mixed Method Appraisal Tool (MMAT) 2018 version. RESULTS: A total of 55 (55/2991, 2%) articles using mixed methods were retrieved, including 17 medical studies and 38 ethnobotanical studies. We performed an in-depth analysis on the 17 medical studies, which studied cancer, stress, pain, fatigue, exercises, mindfulness intervention, herbal medicine use, art and acupuncture. Thirteen pilot studies applied MMR to evaluate the feasibility of interventions or programs (13/17, 76%); phenomenology was inferred as the most common philosophical assumptions (13/17, 76%); the most applied type of MMR was convergent design (16/17, 94%); integration often took place at integration (12/17, 71%). Among the 16 eligible studies for quality appraisal, majority were rated as good (14/16, 88%), whereas two studies were rated as poorly described. Primarily, a poor rating was due to incomplete reporting of data analysis and citations in qualitative components; lack of confounder controlling and the sampling strategy in quantitative components; poor description of integration and justification for mixed methods. Comparing with the previous review, fewer MMR were published in 2020 in CAM, but the proportion of studies that clearly reported MMR has increased by 4 times (4%→15%). CONCLUSION: CAM researchers need to realize the benefits that MMR can have on conducting further health care research. Our findings highlight that applying MMR will be helpful to understand the complex dynamics and interdisciplinary nature of complex intervention. In addition, addressing a standardized reporting criteria for MMR is recommended.