Background. Migraine is a common neurological disease, which burdens individuals and society all over the world. Acupuncture, an important method in Traditional Chinese Medicine, is widely used in clinical practice as a treatment for migraine. Several systematic reviews (SRs) have investigated the effectiveness and safety of acupuncture for migraine. Objective. To summarize and critically assess the quality of relevant SRs and present an objective and comprehensive evidence on the effectiveness and safety of acupuncture for migraine. Data Sources. MEDLINE, Embase, Cochrane Library, PROSPERO database, Chinese National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI), Chinese Biological Medicine (CBM), China Science and Technology Journal (SCTJ), and WanFang database (WF) were searched from inception to December 2019 and grey literatures were manually searched. Selection Criteria. SRs which meet the criteria were independently selected by 2 reviewers according to a predetermined protocol. Data Extraction. Characteristics of included SRs were independently extracted by 2 reviewers following a predefined data extraction form. Review Appraisal. The methodological quality, risk of bias, and reporting quality of included SRs were assessed, respectively, by a Measurement Tool to Assess Systematic Reviews (AMSTAR) 2, the Risk of Bias in Systematic reviews (ROBIS) tool, and the Preferred Reporting Item for Systematic Review and Meta-analysis-Acupuncture (PRISMA-A) statement. The quality of outcomes was evaluated by the Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development, and Evaluation (GRADE). Results. A total of 15 SRs were included. All the SRs were published between 2011–2019. Based on AMSTAR 2, 14 out of 15 SRs were rated critically low quality and 1 was rated low quality. According to ROBIS tool, 9 SRs (60%) were low risk of bias. With the PRISMA-A checklist, we found 11 out of 15 SRs were found adequately reported over 70%. With the GRADE tool, we found high quality of evidence indicated that the effective rate of acupuncture was superior to western medicine in treatment of migraine. Besides, acupuncture reduced more headache days and the times of using painkiller and was more effective in reducing the frequency and degree of headache than western medicine and sham acupuncture. Limitations. There might be some missing information. The accuracy of the conclusions may be decreased reduced since we were unable to synthesis all the evidence. Conclusions. Based on high quality of evidence, we concluded that acupuncture may be an effective and safe therapy for migraine. However, the quality of SRs in acupuncture for migraine still needs more improvement.
Objective: To evaluate the effects and safety of repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) on aphasia in stroke patients. Methods: We searched databases from inception to January 28, 2021. Randomized control trials investigating the effects and safety of rTMS for aphasia patients after stroke were included. Study screening, data extraction, and risk of bias assessment were performed independently by two reviewers. Meta-analysis was conducted with Review Manager 5.3 software. The quality of the evidence was assessed by the Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development, and Evaluation (GRADE). Results: Twenty-eight studies with 1287 patients were included. All studies were assessed at low or unclear risk of bias in one or more domains. The meta-analysis exhibited rTMS was better than sham rTMS and conventional rehabilitation in language recovery. Low-frequency rTMS showed greater improvement in language recovery except for comprehension than sham rTMS. Low-frequency and bilateral rTMS were superior to conventional rehabilitation in language recovery. High-frequency rTMS was no better than sham rTMS and conventional rehabilitation for improving aphasia. The rTMS had better effects in naming, comprehension and aphasia quotient at 20 sessions. Eleven studies reported rTMS was safe for aphasia patients after stroke. The quality of evidence for all outcomes was low or very low, and publication bias may exist. Conclusions: rTMS may be relatively effective and safe for aphasia patients after stroke. However, these findings should be treated with caution due to high heterogeneity and potential biases.
Introduction: Myopia is the most common cause of avoidable visual impairment worldwide, which causes huge economic burden and social burden. There are several ways to treat and reduce myopia, but all have drawbacks; this reality drives us to search for additional effective and low-risk interventions of treatment for myopia. Acupuncture is an ancient therapy with a history of thousands of years and is now widely used in the medical system. Some randomized controlled trials have reported that acupuncture, as an adjuvant therapy, can effectively improve the diopter and vision in the sense of myopic children. Deqi is a long-standing belief to ensure the efficacy of acupuncture in the treatment of myopia, but this belief has not been confirmed by sufficient evidence of randomized controlled trials. Methods: This clinical study is a parallel-group, randomized controlled, and single blind study. Three hundred eligible adolescents will randomly be divided into acupuncture Deqi group, acupuncture without Deqi group, and waiting list group. All groups will be given frame glasses for corrective treatment; patients in the acupuncture Deqi group will be treated with acupuncture at acupoints around the eyes and flat puncture to Deqi, while acupuncture without Deqi group will not flat puncture to Deqi. The waiting list group will not receive acupuncture treatment. The primary outcome will be diopter measurement. Adverse events and safety indexes will be recorded throughout the study. Discussion: Our study will compare acupuncture Deqi with acupuncture without Deqi, and place it in a control group for the treatment of myopia. The results of this trial are expected to provide solid evidence for the effectiveness and safety of acupuncture combined with Deqi in the treatment of myopia, and hope to provide a reference for clinical practice. The primary outcome will be diopter measurement of the patients before treatment. Trial registration: ChiCTR2000037874, registered September 3, 2020.
Background: Upper limb dysfunction is one of common sequelae of stroke which limits daily activities and decreases quality of life of patients, as well as increasing caregiving burden on families. Theta burst stimulation (TBS) is considered to be a beneficial therapy for post-stroke patients with upper limb motor dysfunction, but there is a lack of a high quality evidence. We aim to investigate the effectiveness and safety of TBS for upper limb motor dysfunction in patients with stroke. Methods: The following databases will be searched: PubMed, EMBASE, The Cochrane Library, Web of Science, China Biology Medicine (CBM), China National Knowledge infrastructure (CNKI), Technology Periodical Database (VIP) and WanFang Data from the inception to October 2019. All relevant randomized controlled trials (RCTs) using TBS to treat poststroke patients with upper limb motor dysfunction will be included. The primary outcome is Upper Limb Fugl-Meyer Assessment (UL-FMA). Secondary outcomes will include Action Research Arm Test (ARAT), Box and Block Test (BBT), Wolf Motor Function Test (WMFT), Motor Assessment Scale (MAS), Nine Hole Peg Test (NHPT), Grip strength and other scales evaluating the upper limb motor function. Adverse effects will also be evaluated. Two reviewers will screen studies, extract data and assess the risk of bias of included studies independently. Data analysis will be conducted using Review Manager software (RevMan, version 5.3.5) and R software (version 3.6.1). Results: Our SR will be conducted according to AMSTAR 2.0 and reported in compliance with PRISMA. The findings of this SR will be disseminated through peer-reviewed publications or conference presentations. Conclusion: Our study will provide evidence for the effectiveness and safety of theta burst stimulation for upper limb motor dysfunction in patients with stroke. Ethics and dissemination: This systematic review (SR) does not require formal ethical approval since no privacy health information will be included. The findings of this SR will be disseminated through peer-reviewed publications or conference presentations. PROSPERO registration number: CRD42019142462.
Objective The aim of the study was to evaluate the effectiveness and safety of extracorporeal shock wave therapy on spasticity after upper motor neuron injury. Design Eight electronic databases were searched systematically from their inception to August 3, 2021, to provide robust evidence for the efficacy of extracorporeal shock wave therapy for spasticity and range of motion after upper motor neuron injury. Study screening, data extraction, risk of bias assessment, and evaluation of the certainty of evidence were performed independently by two independent reviewers. Data analysis was conducted using RevMan 5.3.5 and R 3.6.1 software. Results Forty-two studies with 1973 patients who met the eligibility criteria were selected from articles published from 2010 to 2021, of which 34 were included in the meta-analysis. A comparison intervention revealed that extracorporeal shock wave therapy significantly decreased the Modified Ashworth Scale score and increased the passive range of motion of a joint. Regarding the safety of extracorporeal shock wave therapy, slightly adverse effects, such as skin injury, bone distortion, muscle numbness, pain, petechiae, and weakness, were reported in five studies. Conclusions Extracorporeal shock wave therapy may be an effective and safe treatment for spasticity after upper motor neuron injury. However, because of poor methodological qualities of the included studies and high heterogeneity, this conclusion warrants further investigation. To Claim CME Credits Complete the self-assessment activity and evaluation online at http://www.physiatry.org/JournalCME CME Objectives Upon completion of this article, the reader should be able to: (1) Determine the impact of extracorporeal shock wave therapy on spasticity after upper motor neuron injury; (2) Describe the factors that affect the efficacy of extracorporeal shock wave therapy on spasticity; and (3) Discuss the mechanism of action of extracorporeal shock wave therapy on spasticity. Level Advanced Accreditation The Association of Academic Physiatrists is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education to provide continuing medical education for physicians. The Association of Academic Physiatrists designates this Journal-based CME activity for a maximum of 1.0 AMA PRA Category 1 Credit(s) ™. Physicians should only claim credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity.
Oxidative stress alters cellular microenvironment, facilitating cell apoptosis and inflammatory response, and oxidation of lens constituents may ultimately result in cataracts. Astragaloside IV (AS-IV) exhibits a variety of pharmacological activities, such as antioxidative and anti-inflammatory activity via regulating various signaling pathways. However, the effect of AS-IV on lens epithelial cells and its potential therapeutic role in cataracts remained to be investigated. In this study, AS-IV prevented H 2 O 2 -induced injury and inflammatory response in human lens epithelial cell line HLE-B3 through inhibiting NLRP3 inflammasome in a mitogen-activated protein kinase-dependent pathway, providing a potential novel therapeutic strategy for cataracts.
ObjectiveThis study aimed to systematically review the relationship between dry eye disease (DED) and asthma based on published population-based studies.Data sourcesPubMed, EMBASE and ISI Web of Science from their inception were searched up to October 2019.Study selectionObservational studies addressing the association between asthma and DED will be eligible.Data extraction and synthesisTwo reviewers independently conducted the data extraction and quality assessment. We used a random-effects model for all analyses. Subgroup analysis according to ethnicity was performed to test the influence of ethnicity on the association.Main outcomes and measuresSix independent studies (a total of 45 215 patients with asthma and 232 864 control subjects) were included in this review and had an average of seven stars by the Newcastle-Ottawa Scale. Our current findings suggest that the prevalence of DED was higher in the asthma group than in the control group (Z=7.42, p<0.00001; OR 1.29, 95% CI 1.20 to 1.38). In the subgroup analysis by ethnicity, Australian, Caucasian and Asian patients with asthma showed an increased risk of DED.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.
hi@scite.ai
334 Leonard St
Brooklyn, NY 11211
Copyright © 2024 scite LLC. All rights reserved.
Made with 💙 for researchers
Part of the Research Solutions Family.