scholarly journals Effectiveness of Acupuncturing at the Sphenopalatine Ganglion Acupoint Alone for Treatment of Allergic Rhinitis: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

2019 ◽  
Vol 2019 ◽  
pp. 1-10 ◽  
Author(s):  
Qinwei Fu ◽  
Lanzhi Zhang ◽  
Yang Liu ◽  
Xinrong Li ◽  
Yepeng Yang ◽  
...  

Aim(s). To evaluate the efficiency of acupuncturing at the sphenopalatine ganglion acupoint alone for treatment of allergic rhinitis. Design. A total of ten online databases were searched to find studies published up to Jan. 2018. Primary outcome measures include the TNSS, the RQLQ score, the VAS score, total effective rate, score for signs and symptoms, and the improvement of disease classification. Study quality of each included article was evaluated by the Cochrane Collaboration risk of bias tool. A meta-analysis was conducted based on the Cochrane systematic review method by using RevMan 5.3 software. Interventions. Acupuncturing SGA alone was the only therapy in experimental group. Interventions in control groups includes sham acupuncture, acupuncturing other regular acupoints, and western medicine. Specific techniques included manual acupuncture and electroacupuncture only. Primary Outcomes. They include TNSS, RQLQ, VAS score, total effective rate, the improvement of disease classification. Results. Ten studies of eight articles involving 1004 participants were included. Result of meta-analysis showed that acupuncturing sphenopalatine ganglion acupoints alone was more effective than control groups. However, several adverse effects were reported. Conclusion. These findings show that acupuncturing the sphenopalatine ganglion acupoint alone has a potential role in alleviating nasal symptoms, improving quality of life for patients, and the effectiveness of acupuncture in the treatment of allergic rhinitis, suggesting it as a considerable therapy for allergic rhinitis. However, more studies are needed to execute a subgroup analysis of various variables and to evaluate the publication bias of the study.

2019 ◽  
Vol 2019 ◽  
pp. 1-19
Author(s):  
Hetao Huang ◽  
Jianke Pan ◽  
Weiyi Yang ◽  
Yanhong Han ◽  
Minghui Luo ◽  
...  

Objective. To compare the efficacy and safety of kidney-tonifying and blood-activating medicinal herbs (KTBAMs) and nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) in the treatment of knee osteoarthritis (KOA). Methods. Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) from online databases that compared the efficacy of KTBAMs and NSAIDs in the treatment of KOA were retrieved. The main outcomes included the evaluation of functional outcomes, pain, and adverse effects. The Cochrane risk-of-bias (ROB) tool was used to assess methodological quality. Results. A total of 38 RCTs (3994 participants) were included in our meta-analysis. We found that KTBAMs had a significantly higher total effective rate (P<0.00001, risk ratio (RR) = 1.08, confidence interval (CI) = 1.05 to 1.11, I2 = 4%) and a lower gastrointestinal adverse reaction rate (P<0.00001, RR = 0.36, CI = 0.24 to 0.53, I2 = 33%) than NSAIDs. KTBAMs showed greater improvements in the Knee Society Scale (KSS) scores (mean difference (MD) = 7.17, 95% CI 0.71 to 13.64, P=0.03). Regarding the visual analog scale (VAS) scores, WOMAC scores, and Lequence scores, there were no significant differences between the KTBAM group and the NSAID group. The GRADE quality level of this systematic review indicated that the very low-quality evidence showed that KTBAMs had a higher total effective rate, while the moderate-quality evidence showed that the adverse reactions of KTBAMs were lower and the KSS scores were higher. Low-quality evidence showed no significant differences in improving VAS scores, WOMAC scores, or Lequence scores. Conclusion. KTBAMs were superior to NSAIDs in terms of a higher total effective rate, a lower adverse reaction rate, and a higher KSS score. There were no significant differences between KTBAMs and NSAIDs in improving VAS scores, WOMAC scores, and Lequence scores of patients with KOA. Therefore, KTBAMs may be an alternative effective method for treating KOA. However, high-quality, well-designed RCTs with long-term follow-up are still required.


2019 ◽  
Vol 2019 ◽  
pp. 1-8
Author(s):  
Yue Wang ◽  
Ming Li ◽  
An-Sheng Zha

The objective of the meta-analysis was to evaluate the efficacy and safety of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) in the treatment of Crohn’s disease (CD). Pubmed, Embase, Medline, Web of Science, China National Knowledge Infrastructure, Chinese Biomedical Literature, Wanfang Database, and Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials were searched (through October 2018). The quality of randomized clinical trials meeting the inclusion criteria was assessed and the data were extracted according to the Cochrane Review Handbook v5.0 by two evaluators. A meta-analysis was performed using the software Stata 12.0. Twelve randomized controlled trials (RCTs) were selected. The studies were of low methodological quality. The meta-analysis indicated that treatment with TCM and Western Medicine (WM) was significantly superior compared to treatment with WM alone with regard to total effective rate, remission maintenance rate, reduction of C-reactive protein (CRP), reduction of erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR), clinical score reduction, and reduction of adverse events. Mucosal healing was improved in both the TCM-WM and WM groups; however, there were no significant differences between the two groups. There was a certain publication bias in the studies with regard to efficiency, adverse reactions, mucosal healing, and recurrence rate; however, there was no obvious publication bias with regard to other indicators. TCM, as an adjuvant therapy with WM, shows advantages in inducing remission in CD. The current evidence suggests that TCM-WM treatment might be more efficient in terms of total effective rate, remission maintenance rate, CRP reduction, ESR reduction, clinical score reduction, and reduction of adverse events than treatment with WM alone. Because of the low quality of the included RCTs, high quality confirmatory evidence is needed to assess the clinical value of TCM in the treatment of CD.


2020 ◽  
Vol 2020 ◽  
pp. 1-13
Author(s):  
Ting Yuan ◽  
Jun Xiong ◽  
Jun Yang ◽  
Xue Wang ◽  
Yunfeng Jiang ◽  
...  

Background. Allergic rhinitis (AR) is a noninfectious inflammatory disease caused by allergic individuals exposed to allergens. Western medicine therapy for treating AR causes obvious adverse events, while thunder fire moxibustion (TFM) is known as a safe and effective treatment for AR. Therefore, we conducted this meta-analysis to evaluate the effectiveness and safety of TFM for treating AR. Methods. PubMed, Web of Science, Embase, the Cochrane Library, CNKI, WanFang, VIP, and CBM from inception to April 5, 2020, were searched without any language restriction. Reviewers identified studies, extracted data, and assessed the quality, independently. The primary outcomes were the total effective rate and the TNSS. The secondary outcomes included TNNSS, RQLQ, VAS, serum IgE, IgA, or IgG level, and adverse events. Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) were collected; methodological quality was evaluated using the Cochrane risk of bias assessment tool (RoB), and the level of evidence was rated using the GRADE approach. Meta-analysis was performed using the RevMan5.3.0 software. Results. A total of 18 RCTs were included, including 1600 patients. The results of this meta-analysis showed a statistically significant effect in a total effective rate of T = TFM (RR = 1.07; 95% CI [1.03, 1.12]; P=0.45; I2 = 0%) and T = TFM + other treatments (RR = 1.18; 95% CI [1.11, 1.25]; P=0.03; I2 = 53%). In addition, TFM intervention also showed significant difference in total symptom score (T = TFM + other treatments) (MD = −1.42; 95% CI [−1.55, −1.29]; P=0.03; I2 = 60%) in patients with AR. Conclusion. Existing evidence shows that TFM is safe and effective for AR. Due to the universal low quality of the eligible trials and low evidence level, we should draw our conclusions with caution. Therefore, clinical researchers should carry out more large-sample, multicentre, high-quality randomized controlled clinical trials in the future to verify the clinical efficacy of TFM in treating AR.


2019 ◽  
Vol 2019 ◽  
pp. 1-9
Author(s):  
Shuangdi Chen ◽  
Wenli Zhao ◽  
Binjie Zhang ◽  
Yijun Jia ◽  
Shihua Wu ◽  
...  

Objective. To comprehensively compare the effects of conventional therapy combined with intravenous vitamin C and conventional therapy on viral myocarditis in children through a meta-analysis. Methods. Relevant articles including clinical trials of normal treatment combined with intravenous vitamin C and conventional therapy for viral myocarditis in children that were published between January 2000 and February 2018 were selected from PubMed, Cochrane Library, China National Knowledge Infrastructure, China Science and Technology Journal Database, and WANFANG database. The quality of the included studies was assessed using the Cochrane systematic review method (version 5.1.0); data quality was evaluated by two independent researchers. The total effective rate; LDH, CK, and CK-MB levels; and other indicators were analyzed using Rev Man 5.3 software. Results. Eight studies were eligible for this meta-analysis, which included a total of 426 patients in the treatment group and 363 patients in the control group. The meta-analysis results of six studies showed that the total effective rate of intravenous vitamin C combined with conventional therapy was higher than that of conventional therapy alone [Z = 5.46, 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.21 (1.13 to 1.30), P < 0.00001]; that of five studies showed that LDH levels were lower in children receiving intravenous vitamin C combined with conventional therapy than in those receiving conventional therapy alone [Z = 3.70, 95% CI: −1.88 (−2.88 to −0.88), P = 0.0002]; that of three studies showed that CK levels were lower in children receiving intravenous vitamin C combined with conventional therapy than in those receiving conventional therapy alone [Z = 4.21, 95% CI: −0.55 (−0.81 to −0.30), P < 0.0001]; that of four studies showed that CK-MB levels were lower in children receiving intravenous vitamin C combined with conventional therapy than in those receiving conventional therapy alone [Z = 13.64, 95% CI: −1.44 (−1.65 to −1.24), P < 0.00001]; that of two studies showed that CD3 levels were higher in children receiving intravenous vitamin C combined with conventional therapy than in those receiving conventional therapy alone [Z = 2.45, 95% CI: 0.41 (0.08–0.73), P = 0.01]; that of two studies showed no significant difference in changes in CD4 levels between children receiving intravenous vitamin C combined with conventional therapy and those receiving conventional therapy alone [Z = 0.28, 95% CI: −0.21 (−1.69 to 1.28), P = 0.78]; and that of two studies showed no significant difference in changes in CD4/CD8 between children receiving intravenous vitamin C combined with conventional therapy and those receiving conventional therapy alone [Z = 0.07, 95% CI: −0.03 (−0.73 to 0.67), P = 0.94]. Conclusion. The meta-analysis results showed that intravenous vitamin C combined with conventional therapy is better than the simple, conventional therapy for the treatment of viral myocarditis in children in terms of the total effective rate and LDH, CK, and CK-MB levels.


2021 ◽  
Vol 2021 ◽  
pp. 1-13
Author(s):  
Ziteng Hu ◽  
Lidong Gao ◽  
Chengxian Li ◽  
Alberto Cucco ◽  
Shang Wang ◽  
...  

Background. Longdan Xiegan decoction (LDXGD) has been widely used in the treatment of eczema. In recent years, randomized controlled trials (RCTs) of LDXGD for the treatment of eczema have gradually increased. Most of the results show that LDXGD is effective in treating eczema. However, whether these conclusions are reliable or not requires meta-analysis. Objective. This study aimed to systematically evaluate the clinical efficacy of LDXGD in the treatment of eczema. Materials and Methods. Seven electronic databases, including PubMed, Excerpta Medica Database (EMBASE), Cochrane Library, Chinese Biomedical Literature on Disc (CBM), China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI), WanFang, and Chinese Science and Technology Periodical Database (VIP) were systematically searched from their inception until January 2021. Risk of bias was assessed using criteria from the Cochrane Collaboration and meta-analysis was conducted on the screened literature data using Review Manage (RevMan 5.3). Then, to assess the quality of evidence, the GRADE criteria was adopted. Results. 14 RCTs with 1080 participants were identified. Meta-analysis indicated that compared with western medicine (WM), the cure rate and the total effective rate of LDXGD in treating eczema were higher. Meanwhile, the recurrence rate and the levels of interleukin-6 (IL-6), interleukin-8 (IL-8), and tumor necrosis factor (TNF-α) after treatment were lower. The adverse reaction was reported in 5 out of 14 studies without significant statistical difference. According to GRADE criteria, the quality of evidence was low for all outcomes except for the cure rate (moderate-quality evidence) and the total effective rate (moderate-quality evidence). Conclusion. The clinical efficacy of LDXGD in the treatment of eczema was more effective compared with the one of conventional WM alone. However, due to the limitation of the quality of the included studies, additional studies are required to further confirm these results.


2021 ◽  
Vol 2021 ◽  
pp. 1-23
Author(s):  
K. H. Chan ◽  
Y. Y. S. Tsoi ◽  
M. McCall

Background. Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), including Chinese herbal medicine (CHM) and acupuncture, exhibits beneficial effects on stable chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) such as improving lung function and reducing exacerbation. Previous research studies have examined either CHM or acupuncture alone, which are not the usual practice in TCM clinic setting. We conduct a systematic review for evaluating the clinical effectiveness and safety of TCM by combining CHM and acupuncture. Methods. Databases are searched from inception to November 2019. Randomized controlled trials examining either acupuncture or CHM on stable COPD are included. Primary outcomes include lung functions, exacerbations, and COPD assessment test. Secondary outcomes include quality of life, TCM syndrome score and effective rate, and 6-minute walk distance. Two independent reviewers extract data and assess the quality of evidence and generate meta-analysis and risk of bias by STATA. This protocol follows the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis Protocols (PRISMA-P) guidelines. Results. 100 randomized controlled trials (8291 participants) were included to compare add-on Chinese medicine treatment with conventional treatment (CT). Combining CHM with CT improves FEV1 (MD: 0.18, 95% CI: 0.08, 0.28), exacerbation rate (MD: −0.29, 95% CI: −0.61, 0.03), COPD assessment test (MD: −2.16, 95% CI: −3.44, -0.88), TCM syndrome score (MD: −3.96, 95% CI: −5.41, −2.51) and effective rate (RR: 0.89, 95% CI: 0.80, 0.93), and 6-minute walk test (MD: 37.81, 95% CI: 20.90, 54.73). No serious adverse events were reported. Risk of bias: low to unclear. Conclusions. This review identifies sufficient moderate-to-low-quality evidence to suggest TCM as an adjunct treatment for stable COPD patients. Though heterogeneity was low among studies, the results were limited and the quality of evidence was low or very low based on small sample sizes and risk of bias. Future studies with larger sample sizes are warranted. The trial is registered with CRD42019161324.


2021 ◽  
Vol 0 (0) ◽  
pp. 0-0
Author(s):  
J.Y. Kim ◽  
D. Hwang ◽  
M. Jang ◽  
C.S. Rhee ◽  
D.H. Han

Selecting an appropriate allergen-specific immunotherapy (AIT) regimen for polysensitised allergic rhinitis (AR) patients is challenging for clinicians. Although previous studies showed comparable effectiveness of single-allergen AIT with house dust mite (HDM) extract between monosensitised and polysensitised AR patients, there is no systematic review and meta-analysis demonstrating the comparable effectiveness of HDM AIT. In this meta-analysis, we analysed nine studies to compare the clinical effectiveness of HDM AIT. The primary outcome was nasal symptom score and secondary outcomes were medication and quality of life scores. The changes in nasal symptom score after HDM AIT did not significantly differ between monosensitised and polysensitised patients. The clinical effectiveness of HDM AIT regarding medication and quality of life score was not significantly different between monosensitised and polysensitised patients). In conclusion, single-allergen AIT with HDM extract showed comparable clinical effectiveness between polysensitised and monosensitised patients with AR.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shanshan Xiang ◽  
Ting Fang ◽  
Changan Ren ◽  
Junnan Qi ◽  
Zheng Guo ◽  
...  

Abstract Background: Moxibustion has been used in treating patients with Peripheral Facial Paralysis(PFP), but its effectiveness and safety have not been systematically evaluated. Therefore, the objective of this review is to comprehensively assess the effectiveness and safety of moxibustion for PFP.Methods: We will conduct a systematic document retrieval of databases from inception to March 18, 2021, including Embase, Cochrane Library, Pubmed, Chinese databases SinoMed, Chinese National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI), Chinese Scientific Journals Database and Wanfang Data (WF). Reviewers will independently retrieve databases, identify trials, extract data, and evaluate the quality of eligible randomized controlled trials(RCTs). The outcomes will include: the effective rate, the House-Brackmann (H-B) score, Facial Disability Index (FDI), and side effects. The quality of eligible RCT will be assessed by the Cochrane risk-of-bias. Meta-analysis will be processed by the Cochrane Collaboration’s RevMan 5.3.0.Discussion: This review will provide comprehensive evidence of moxibustion for PFP.Systematic review registration: PROSPERO CRD42020207068


2021 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xinfu Cao ◽  
Mingxue Zhou ◽  
Hongxu Liu ◽  
Xiufen Chen ◽  
Xiang Li ◽  
...  

Background: Shensong Yangxin capsule (SSYX) is a well-known traditional Chinese patent medicine for treating arrhythmia. Recently, a flurry of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) of SSYX combined with amiodarone (SSYX-amiodarone) was reported in the treatment of heart failure (HF) complicated by ventricular arrhythmia (VA) in China. However, these RCTs have not been systematically evaluated. Therefore, this study aimed to evaluate the efficacy and safety of SSYX-amiodarone in the treatment of heart failure complicated by ventricular arrhythmia (HF-VA).Methods: Seven electronic literature databases (the Cochrane Library, PubMed, EMBASE, China Biomedical database web, China National Knowledge Infrastructure Databases, Chinese Scientific Journal database and Wanfang database) were searched from their inceptions to June 1, 2020 to identify RCTs of SSYX-amiodarone in the treatment of HF-VA. The primary outcomes included the total effective rate and adverse events (ADRs). The secondary outcomes included the frequency of ventricular premature complexes, left ventricular ejection fraction, N terminal pro Btype natriuretic peptide (NT-proBNP), and QT dispersion (QTd). The quality of the included RCTs was assessed using the Cochrane risk-of-bias tool. All data was analyzed using RevMan 5.3 software. The registration number of this protocol is PROSPERO CRD42020196689.Results: There are Eighteen trials involving 1,697 patients were included in this study. Meta-analysis showed that SSYX-amiodarone group was superior to the amiodarone group in improving the total effective rate [RR = 1.21; 95%CI (1.16, 1.27); p &lt; 0.01], meanwhile reducing the ADRs [RR = 0.65; 95%CI (0.45, 0.95); p = 0.03], VPCs [MD = 170.96; 95%CI (159.88, 182.04); p &lt; 0.01] and QTd [MD = 8.39; 95%CI (6.91, 9.87); p &lt; 0.01]. No significant difference of enhancing LVEF [MD = 4.32; 95%CI (−0.56, 9.20); p = 0.08] and reducing NT-proBNP [SMD = 0.17; 95%CI (−0.81, 1.14); p = 0.73] was observed between SSYX-amiodarone and amiodarone group.Conclusions: Despite the apparent positive findings reported, the evidence provided by this meta-analysis was still insufficient to support the routine use of SSYX-amiodarone for HF-VA due to the poor methodological quality of included studies. The overall effect should to be verified in further through more well-design clinical studies with reasonable sample and good methodological quality.


2021 ◽  
Vol 2021 ◽  
pp. 1-14
Author(s):  
Lan-Chun Liu ◽  
Qi-Yuan Mao ◽  
Chao Liu ◽  
Jun Hu ◽  
Lian Duan ◽  
...  

Objective. The aim of this meta-analysis was to systematically evaluate the effectiveness and safety of the traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) formula Bushen Huoxue Decoction (BSHXD) in treating coronary heart disease (CHD). Methods. Randomized controlled trials (RCTS) of BSHXD in treating CHD were searched until March 2020, through six electronic databases: PubMed, Cochrane Library, CNKI, WanFang, SinoMed, and VIP. This study used the Cochrane Risk Test bias tool in the Cochrane Handbook to assess the quality of the methodology. Review Manager (RevMan) 5.3 was used to analyze the results. Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development, and Evaluation (GRADE) criteria were applied in the classification of evidence quality. Results. Ten RCTs involving 901 patients were finally included in this meta-analysis. It revealed that the effectiveness of BSHXD in treating CHD was significantly better than that of the conventional western medicine (CWM) treatment ( P < 0.00001 ). The effective rate of BSHXD treatment group on ECG was also significantly higher than that of CWM group ( P < 0.00001 ). The low-density lipoprotein cholesterol was decreased in the treatment groups compared with those in the control groups ( P < 0.00001 ). There was also a reduction in frequency and duration of angina pectoris ( P < 0.00001 ). There were no significant differences in TC level ( P = 0.08 ), TG level ( P = 0.86 ), and HDL level ( P = 0.76 ) between the treatment and control groups. Five studies had informed adverse events, including nausea and diarrhea. Conclusion. Our findings laid the foundation to the use of TCM Formula BSHXD in combination with conventional western medicine for treating CHD. However, due to the limitation of the quality of the included researches, in addition to potential reporting bias, the above conclusions still need verification by higher-quality and better-designed studies.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document