Objective. This pilot study aims to evaluate the effectiveness and safety of acupuncture in the treatment of chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy (CIPN). Methods. This study was a pilot randomized controlled trial, which was conducted with cooperation between Beijing University of Chinese Medicine (BUCM), China, and Tehran University of Medical Science (TUMS), Iran. Forty participants with CIPN were randomly assigned (1 : 1) to receive twelve sessions of acupuncture (20 minutes each session over 4 weeks) or take one 300 mg tablet of vitamin B1 and three 300 mg capsules of gabapentin per day for 4 weeks, after which both groups were followed up for 4 weeks. The primary endpoint was CIPN symptom severity measured by the Numerical Rating Scale (NRS). The secondary endpoints included sensory neuropathy grade evaluated by the National Cancer Institute-Common Toxicity Criteria for Adverse Events (NCI-CTCAE), neurophysiological assessment of CIPN by the nerve conduction study (NCS), and the patient overall satisfaction with treatment. Safety was assessed at each visit. Results. The NRS and NCI-CTCAE sensory neuropathy grading scales decreased significantly over time in both groups (both P<0.001), with a significantly higher reduction in the acupuncture group (P<0.001 and P=0.03, respectively). In addition, the acupuncture group showed a higher overall satisfaction with the treatment at the end of treatment and after 4 weeks follow-up, in comparison with the vit B1 and gabapentin group (P=0.01 and P=0.001, respectively). The NCS (except for the latency of the sural nerve) in the acupuncture group improved significantly (P<0.05), while improvement in the vit B1 and gabapentin group was not observed (P>0.05). Conclusion. Our study revealed that acupuncture, as a kind of traditional Chinese therapeutic method, is significantly effective and safe in the treatment of CIPN. Moreover, acupuncture is more effective than using vitamin B1 and gabapentin as the conventional treatment. Trial registration. This trial is registered with the Iranian Registry of Clinical Trials (IRCT20190615043900N1).

BACKGROUND: Spasticity is a common, serious symptom after stroke. Extracorporeal shock wave therapy (ESWT) has been suggested for the treatment of muscle spasticity. OBJECTIVE: To investigate the effects of ESWT on post stroke wrist flexor spasticity. METHODS: Fifteen patients with poststroke wrist flexor spasticity (12 male and 3 female with a mean age of 54 years) were enrolled. Patients received 1 sham ESWT followed by 1 active ESWT 1 week later. The outcome measures were the Modified Modified Ashworth Scale (MMAS), the H max /M max ratio, and the Brunnstrom motor recovery stage. RESULTS: The sham ESWT had not effects on the outcome measures. After active ESW, the MMAS scores of spasticity and the H max /M max ratio improved. The improvements were maintained 5 weeks after active ESWT. No significant improvements were observed for the motor recovery after sham or active ESWT. CONCLUSIONS: In adult patients after stroke, a single session of active ESWT resulted in significant improvement in the wrist flexor spasticity and alpha motor neuron excitability.

Sono-elastography could be a useful diagnostic method for evaluating CTS severity in affected cases.

This study has established normal values for PABC nerve conduction studies. Furthermore, age and body mass index must be taken into account for making diagnostic conclusion in PABC nerve conduction studies.

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Both methods were effective in the treatment of chronic PF. Steroid injection provided a more rapid and short-term therapeutic effect. However, ozone (O2-O3) injection led to a slow and longer-lasting treatment outcome. Ozone (O2-O3) injection can be an effective treatment, with slow onset and a longer durability in the treatment of chronic PF.

Objective The aim of this study was to compare the efficacy of prolotherapy with hypertonic dextrose and radial shock wave therapy in chronic lateral epicondilosis. Design Prospective single-blind randomized clinical trial. Setting Physical medicine and rehabilitation clinic. Subjects Thirty-three patients with at least three months of signs and symptoms of lateral epicondilosis, as well as failure of at least one of the conservative treatments, randomly allocated into two groups. Methods Sixteen patients received three sessions of shock wave therapy, and 17 received one session prolotherapy. Severity of pain via visual analog scale (VAS), grip strength via Baseline Pneumatic Dynamometer, pressure pain threshold (PPT) by algometer and Disabilities of Arm, Shoulder, and Hand quick questionnaire (Quick DASH) were assessed at baseline, four weeks, and eight weeks after the intervention. Results Within-group analysis showed that in both groups, differences between all of the outcome measures were significant after four and also eight weeks. Between-group analysis after four and eight weeks showed that the VAS and Quick DASH had significantly more improvement in the shock wave group. However, the two groups were similar regarding grip strength and PPT. No complication was observed in the two groups. Conclusions Based on the results of this study, a regiment of three sessions (weekly) of radial extracorporeal shock wave therapy is significantly more effective than one session of prolotherapy with 20% dextrose regarding pain and function in the management of chronic lateral epicondylosis in short-term follow-up.

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