Progress of researches on mechanisms of acupuncture therapy in the treatment of lumbar disc herniation. / é’ˆç¸æ²»ç–—è °æ¤Žé—´ç›˜çªå‡ºç—‡ä½œç”¨æœºåˆ¶ç ”ç©¶è¿›å±•.

Lumbar intervertebral disc herniation (LDH) is a common and frequently-occurring disease, which usually causes lumbar and leg pain. Studies have shown that acupuncture can improve the symptoms of LDH patients. In the present paper, we summarize the progress of researches on the mechanisms of acupuncture underlying improvement of symptoms of LDH in recent 10 years from 1) delaying the intervertibral disc degeneration (by down-regulating the expressions of matrix metalloproteinase ï¼»MMPï¼½-3 and MMP-4, up-regulating the expressions of diosaccharides and polyglycoprotein, inhibiting apoptosis and promoting mitochondrial autophagy of nucleus pulposus cells, etc.), 2) maintaining spinal column stability (by relieving rachiasmus and improving lumbar flexor and extensor muscle strength, lowering the degree of polyfidus edema and fat infiltration, and restoring the biomechanics of the spine), 3) regulating inflammation (by inhibiting the production of proinflammatory factors and increasing the production of anti-inflammatory factors, etc.), 4) regulating immune response (by promoting the activity of T cells and other immune cells, lowering serum levels of MMP-3, transforming growth factor-ß1 and prostaglandin E2, raising serum levels of IgA, IgG and IgM to improve immune function ), 5) modulating neural structure and function (by promoting myelin regeneration of sciatic nerve fibers, and reducing the edema of Schwann cells' cytoplasm and mitochondria, and improving neural ultrastructure, and sensory and motor functions of peripheral nerves, etc.), 6) relieving lumbar pain (by down-regulating expression of Ca2+/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase and activation of lumbar spinal cord glial cells, blocking nociceptive signal conduction, regulating the levels of pain-related factors, etc.), and 7) improving local microcirculation. These results may provide scientific evidence for acupuncture treatment of LDH.

Chinese Herbal Medicine Xingnaojing Injection for Acute Ischemic Stroke: An Overview of Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses.

Background: Xingnaojing injection (XNJ) is the only Chinese herbal injection approved for both intracerebral hemorrhage and ischemic stroke (IS) first-aid on ambulances in China; many systematic reviews (SRs) and meta-analyses (MAs) of XNJ on stroke have been published. The purpose of this research was to evaluate and summarize the current evidence on XNJ for IS. Methods: A comprehensive search was conducted for SRs and MAs of XNJ on IS in seven databases up to January 1, 2021. Two authors independently identified SRs and MAs, extracted data, assessed the quality of the included SRs and MAs using the Assessment of Multiple Systematic Reviews 2 (AMSTAR 2), and assessed quality of evidence using the Grading of Recommendations, Assessment, Development, and Evaluation (GRADE). Results: A total of 10 SRs met the inclusion criteria. The quality of included SRs using AMSTAR 2 was critically low as the critical items were poorly reported. Only 10% of SRs reported 50% of the 16 items, while the remaining 90% SRs reported just less than half of the items on AMSTAR 2. For GRADE, 7 (35%) of outcomes had low-quality evidence, 10 (50%) with very low, and 3 (15%) with moderate quality evidence. Very low to low quality of evidence indicated XNJ plus conventional therapy (CT) alleviated the neurological deficits of acute IS. Moderate-quality evidence showed XNJ plus CT reduced mortality when compared to Danshen injection plus CT, and very low-quality evidence showed XNJ plus CT could not improve the degree of coma, while low-quality evidence indicated the opposite. Mild adverse events in the CT group were less than those in the XNJ plus CT group, and there were no serious adverse events, but there was no statistical difference between the two groups. The included 10 SRs indicated that XNJ was used for acute IS, but only four SRs (40%) reported the course of disease. Conclusion: XNJ appears to be effective and safe for acute IS in improving the neurological deficits, but the evidence is not robust enough. However, whether administering XNJ immediately after or within 24 h of IS is best remains unknown due to the lack of data. Well-designed large-scale randomized controlled trials with measurable outcomes are required in future studies.

An Overview of Systematic Reviews and Meta- analyses on Acupuncture for Post-acute Stroke Dysphagia.

BACKGROUND: Many randomized controlled trials (RCTs) and systematic reviews (SRs) on acupuncture treatment for post-acute stroke dysphagia have been published. Conflicting results from different SRs necessitated an overview to summarize and assess the quality of this evidence to determine whether acupuncture is effective for this condition. The aim was to evaluate methodological quality and summarizing the evidence for important outcomes. METHODS: Seven databases were searched for SRs and/or meta-analysis of RCTs and quasi-RCTs on acupuncture for post-acute stroke dysphagia. Two authors independently identified SRs and meta-analyses, collected data to assess the quality of included SRs and meta analyses according to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) and the revised Assessment of Multiple Systematic Reviews (AMSTAR 2). RESULTS: Searches yielded 382 SRs, 31 were included. The quality of 22 SRs was critically low, five SRs were low, and four Cochrane SRs were moderate when evaluated by AMSTAR2. A total of 17 SRs reported 85.2-96.3% of PRISMA items. Five SRs included explanatory RCTs, 16 SRs included pragmatic RCTs, and 10 SRs included both. CONCLUSION: Currently, evidence on the effectiveness of acupuncture on post-acute stroke dysphagia is of a low quality. The type of study appeared to have no direct influence on the result, but the primary outcome measures showed a relationship with the quality of SRs. High quality trials with large sample sizes should be the focus of future research.

Half-dose ticagrelor versus high-dose clopidogrel in reducing platelet reactivity in acute coronary syndrome patients with high on-clopidogrel platelet reactivity (divide study).

PURPOSE: High on-treatment platelet reactivity (HTPR) after clopidogrel administration in patients with acute coronary syndrome (ACS) has been associated with an increased risk of adverse events. Our previous studies reported that half-dose ticagrelor provides a similar inhibitory effect on adenosine diphosphate (ADP)-induced platelet aggregation as standard-dose ticagrelor, but half-dose of ticagrelor has not been studied in Chinese ACS patients with HTPR. This study aimed to compare the antiplatelet action of half-dose ticagrelor with high-dose clopidogrel in ACS patients with HTPR. METHODS: In this single-center randomized controlled trial, 80 (of 418 screened, 19.13%) ACS patients with HTPR while on clopidogrel were randomized to either half-dose ticagrelor (90 mg LD, then 45 mg twice daily) or high-dose clopidogrel (150 mg once daily). Platelet function was assessed by thromboelastography (TEG) and light transmission aggregometry (LTA), and adverse events were monitored throughout the study for 30 days. RESULTS: The ADP-induced platelet inhibition rate (IR) as measured by TEG was significantly higher for half-dose ticagrelor compared with high-dose clopidogrel (70.40% [61.10%-91.70%] vs. 44.25% [34.67%-79.07%], p = 0.001). The repeated HTPR rate was dramatically higher for high-dose clopidogrel compared with half-dose ticagrelor (6 of 32, 18.75% vs. 1 of 35, 2.85%; p = 0.04). No patients in either treatment group exhibited a major bleeding event or other adverse events. CONCLUSIONS: In ACS patients with HTPR, half-dose ticagrelor is more effective than high-dose clopidogrel in reducing platelet reactivity (NCT03062462).

A Randomized Multicenter Clinical Trial of RPH With the Simplified Milligan-Morgan Hemorrhoidectomy in the Treatment of Mixed Hemorrhoids.

PURPOSE: To explore the safety and efficacy of Ruiyun procedure for hemorrhoids (RPH) or RPH with the simplified Milligan-Morgan hemorrhoidectomy (sMMH) in the treatment of mixed hemorrhoids. METHODS: This is a randomized, controlled, balanced, multicenter study of 3000 patients with mixed hemorrhoids. The outcomes and postoperative complications were compared between 5 types of surgeries. RESULTS: The efficacy rate was the highest in patients who received RPH+sMMH and decreased in the following order: patients who received RPH alone, MMH alone, procedure for prolapse and hemorrhoids (PPH) alone, and PPH+sMMH ( P < .05). The operation time was the shortest in patients who received RPH alone and increased in the following order: patients who received RPH+sMMH, PPH alone, MMH alone, and PPH+sMMH ( P < .01). The duration of postoperative hospitalization stay was the shortest in patients who received RPH alone and increased in the following order: PPH alone, RPH+sMMH, PPH+sMMH, and MMH alone ( P < .01). The incidence of postoperative hemorrhage, uroschesis, anal fissure, crissum hematoma or thrombosis, and anorectal stenosis was significantly lower in patients who received RPH+sMMH than in patients who received the other 4 types of surgical treatments ( P < .05, P < .01). No significant differences in postoperative rectovaginal fistula and anal incontinence were observed between the 5 groups of patients. CONCLUSIONS: RPH with or without simplified MMH can reduce the incidence of postoperative complications and improve the curative efficacy in the treatment of patients with mixed hemorrhoids.

[Treatment of Mixed Hemorrhoids by RPH with the Simplified Milligan-Morgan Surgery: a Multi-center, Randomized, Controlled Clinical Trial].

Objective To observe the safety and efficacy of RPH with the simplified. Milligan-Mor- gan(M-M) surgery on mixed hemorrhoids. Methods Totally 1 200 patients with mixed hemorrhoid were assigned to the control group(600 cases) and the treatment group(600 cases) according to randomized, parallel controlled,multi-center trial design. Patients in the control group received PPH with the simplified M-M surgery, and patients in the treatment group received RPH with the simplified M-M surgery. Postop- erative complications, operation time,the postoperative hospitalization days and the efficacy were ob- served. Results Compared with the control group, the numbers of postoperation hemorrhage, postop- erative uroschesis, anal fissure and anorectal stenosis in treatment group were decreased(P <0. 01 , P < 0. 05), operation time and the postoperative hospitalization days were decreased (P <0. 01 , P <0. 05 ), the cure rate for 3 and 12 months after operation were increased (P <0. 01, P <0. 05). Conclusions RPH with the simplified M-M surgery could reduce the incidence of postoperative complications,improve the clinical cure rate and the curative effect in treatment of mixed hemorrhoids.

Liver fibrosis and hepatic stellate cells: Etiology, pathological hallmarks and therapeutic targets.

Liver fibrosis is a reversible wound-healing process aimed at maintaining organ integrity, and presents as the critical pre-stage of liver cirrhosis, which will eventually progress to hepatocellular carcinoma in the absence of liver transplantation. Fibrosis generally results from chronic hepatic injury caused by various factors, mainly viral infection, schistosomiasis, and alcoholism; however, the exact pathological mechanisms are still unknown. Although numerous drugs have been shown to have antifibrotic activity in vitro and in animal models, none of these drugs have been shown to be efficacious in the clinic. Importantly, hepatic stellate cells (HSCs) play a key role in the initiation, progression, and regression of liver fibrosis by secreting fibrogenic factors that encourage portal fibrocytes, fibroblasts, and bone marrow-derived myofibroblasts to produce collagen and thereby propagate fibrosis. These cells are subject to intricate cross-talk with adjacent cells, resulting in scarring and subsequent liver damage. Thus, an understanding of the molecular mechanisms of liver fibrosis and their relationships with HSCs is essential for the discovery of new therapeutic targets. This comprehensive review outlines the role of HSCs in liver fibrosis and details novel strategies to suppress HSC activity, thereby providing new insights into potential treatments for liver fibrosis.