[Clinical Trials for Treatment of Allergic Rhinitis with Heat Sensitive Moxibustion and Its Regularity of Heat-sensitization Acupoint Distribution].

OBJECTIVE: To observe the clinical effect of heat sensitive moxibustion (HSM) and its regularity of acupoint heat-sensitization in the treatment of allergic rhinitis (AR) patients. METHODS: Seventy patients with AR were randomly divided into HSM and manual acupuncture groups (n＝35/group). For patients of the HSM group, acupoints Yintang (EX-HN 3), bilateral Yingxiang (LI 20), Shangxing (GV 23), Tongtian (BL 7), Feishu (BL 13), Hegu (LI 4), etc. were used, and for patients of the manual acupuncture group, bilateral LI 20 and LI 4, Bitong (EX-HN 8) and EX-HN 3 were needled and stimulated with uniform reinforcing-reducing needling method. The treatment was conducted once every other day, for 20 days, with 3 days' interval between two 10 days. The symptoms of sneezing, running nose, nasal obstruction, and nasal itching were scored as 1, 2 and 3 points according to their severity. The signs of turbinate-nose cavity bottom/nasal septum correlation, morphological state (swelling or not) of inferior nasal concha and color of nasal mucosa, appearance (deviation or polyp) of the middle turbinate and nasal septum were scored as 1, 2 and 3 points according to their severity. The total score equaled to symptom score plus nasal sign score. The distribution of heat sensitization acupoints for effectively improving AR were recorded. RESULTS: The total effective rate of 82.86%(29/35) in the HSM group had no marked difference in comparison with that of 74.29%(26/35) in the manual acupuncture group (P>0.05). After the treatment, the total scores of symptoms and nasal signs of both HSM and manual acupuncture groups were significantly reduced in comparison with their own individual pre-treatment (P<0.01), and those in the HSM group were significantly decrased than those in the manual acupuncture group (P<0.05). In 35 patients of the HSM group, among the detected 57 acupoints, the most frequently sensitive acupoints were LI 20, EX-HN 3, EX-HN 8, Shangyintang, BL 13, Shenque(CV 8), GV 23, Fengchi(GB 20), Die'e and Dazhui (GV 14) in sequence, mainly covering the Governor Vessel, Large Intestine Meridian of Hand-yangming(LI), and Bladder Meridian of Foot-taiyang(BL), and characterized by heat conduction, heat diffusion, diathermancy, non-thermal (mainly itching) sensation, thermal sensation mainly in the deep tissue and in the distant part rather than in the body surface and the local part. CONCLUSIONS: HSM has a positive effect on improvement of AR, when applied, acupoints LI 20, EX-HN 3, EX-HN 8, Shangyintang, BL 13, CV 8, GV 23, GB 20, Die'e and GV 14 are highly recommended.

[Effects of Ruanmailing Oral Liquid on spatial learning and memory ability and expression of APE/Ref-1 in hippocampal CA1 region in rats with experimental vascular dementia].

OBJECTIVE: To study the effects of Ruanmailing Oral Liquid, a compound traditional Chinese herbal medicine, on spatial learning and memory ability and expression of apurinic/apyrimidinic endonuclease/redox factor-1 (APE/Ref-1) in hippocampal CA1 region in rats with experimental vascular dementia (VaD). METHODS: VaD was induced in rats by permanent occlusion of bilateral common carotid arteries. Forty-five VaD rats were randomly divided into untreated group, nimodipine group, low-dose Ruanmailing group and high-dose Ruanmailing group. Another 15 rats underwent a sham operation consisting of similar skin incision and manipulation but without occlusion of carotid arteries. From the next day after occlusion, the rats were intragastrically administered with normal saline, nimodipine suspension or Ruanmailing Oral Liquid respectively for 30 days. Morris water maze experiment was adopted to test learning and memory of rats in each group. Expression of APE/Ref-1 protein in the hippocampal CA1 region was measured by immunohistochemical method. RESULTS: Escape latency was significantly shortened and number of entries in the target area of rats was significantly increased in the high-dose Ruanmailing group as compared with those in the untreated group (P<0.01). Compared with the untreated group, count of APE/Ref-1 positive cells was significantly increased in the hippocampal CA1 region in the high- and low-dose Ruanmailing groups (P<0.01). Compared with the low-dose group and the nimodipine group, the count of APE/Ref-1 positive cells was remarkably increased in the hippocampal CA1 region in rats of the high-dose Ruanmailing group (P<0.01). There was no statistical difference between the low-dose Ruanmailing group and the nimodipine group. CONCLUSION: Ruanmailing Oral Liquid can improve the learning and memory ability and enhance the lowered expression level of APE/Ref-1 in the hippocampal CA1 region of rats with VaD.