Rationale:Cervical spondylotic myelopathy (CSM) is the most common spinal cord disorder in older patients. The purpose of this case report is to introduce conservative treatment with integrative Korean medicine (KM) as a possible alternative to surgery in patients with mild CSM.Patient concerns:An 81-year-old male with both hand weakness and dysesthesia was diagnosed with CSM and was recommended laminectomy. However, considering the patient's age and the underlying disease, he refused immediate surgery and preferred KM treatmentDiagnoses:The diagnosis of mild CSM was based on a modified Japanese Orthopedic Association (mJOA) score as well as the presence of compression on the spinal cord in magnetic resonance imaging findingsInterventions:Integrative KM treatment consisting of acupuncture, acupotomy, Bee venom herbal acupuncture, cupping therapy, moxibustion, and herbal medicine was provided during the 12-week admission.Outcomes:Clinical improvement was detected with a mJOA score (11 to 17), a numerical rating scale for dysesthesia intensity (5 to 2), finger escape sign (+/+ to +/−), grip and release test (11/14 to 32/31) and grasp power measured by dynamometer (3.1/9.7 to 10.8/18.3 kg) at 12 weeks. This improvement was maintained without surgery until 1 year.Lessons:This case suggests that integrative KM was a possible conservative management option for mild CSM.
Background: This review aims to evaluate the effectiveness and safety of acupuncture treatment for reducing opioid consumption in patients with chronic pain. Methods: We will search the following electronic databases from their inception to November 2019: MEDLINE, EMBASE, the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, the Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature, the Allied and Complementary Medicine Database, the China National Knowledge Infrastructure (a Chinese database), the Japan Science and Technology Information Aggregator (a Japanese database), and five Korean databases (KoreaMed, Research Information Service System, Korean Studies Information Service System, Database Periodical Information Academic, and Oriental Medicine Advanced Searching Integrated System). Randomized controlled trials comparing acupuncture to no treatment, sham acupuncture, and other active interventions for the reduction of opioid consumption in chronic pain patients will be included. The risk of bias will be assessed using the Cochrane risk of bias tool. The primary outcomes will include the prescribed or consumed dose of opioids and withdrawal symptoms related to opioid reduction. A meta-analysis will be performed to estimate a pooled effect, if possible. Conclusion: This study may provide important practical guidance for patients, practitioners, and health-policy makers regarding the use of acupuncture in opioid taper support programs. Dissemination: The results will be disseminated through a peer-reviewed journal or conference presentations. Trial registration number: PROSPERO 2019: CRD42019143486
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Purpose Routine overprescribing of postoperative opioid analgesics may induce side effects and correlate with chronic opioid use following surgery. This review aims to evaluate the effectiveness and safety of acupuncture for opioid-sparing effects in patients who underwent abdominal surgery. Methods Eleven databases in different languages, including English (Ovid MEDLINE, CENTRAL, EMBASE, CINAHL), Chinese, Korean, and Japanese, will be searched. Randomized controlled trials using acupuncture for postoperative pain control in adult patients undergoing abdominal surgery will be screened. All randomized controlled trials comparing acupuncture with no treatment, sham acupuncture, and conventional treatments will be included. The Cochrane risk of bias tool will be used to assess the risk of bias. The primary outcome will consist of a cumulative opioid consumption. Additionally, the number of cumulative opioid analgesic demands/requests, the time to initial opioid analgesic usage, postoperative pain, opioid-related side effects, and adverse events of acupuncture will be assessed. The mean differences or risk ratios with a 95% confidence interval will be calculated to estimate the pooled effect of acupuncture when it is possible to conduct a meta-analysis. Results This study could confirm the effect of opioid-sparing on acupuncture after abdominal surgery. Conclusion This study would evaluate the evidence on the effectiveness of acupuncture after abdominal surgery with a focus on opioid intake. It provides evidence to support decision-making on applying acupuncture for postoperative management. Registration Number CRD42022311155.
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