BACKGROUND: Intravascular low-level laser irradiation (ILLLI) therapy with He-Ne laser can effectively inhibit the occurrence of heroin withdrawal syndrome, but the therapeutic effect should be evaluated by quantitative standards.OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the effect of intravascular low-level He-Ne laser irradiation against withdrawal syndrome with intravenous according to the criteria proposed by the authors.DESIGN: Randomized controlled trial in heroin-addicted patients.SETTING: Analysis and Testing Laboratory of Xinxiang Medical College and Center of Laser Medical Research of Zhenzhou University Medical CollegePARTICIPANTS: The study was completed in Center of Laser Medical Research in Zhengzhou University in January 2003. Thirty heroin addicts from the Detoxification Center of Zhengzhou including 25 male and 5 female patients aged 19- 45 years were divided randomly into experimental group and control group with 15 cases in each. The patients' history of drug abuse ranged from 0. 5 to 5 years and the daily doses they took was 1.0-4.0 g.INTERVENTIONS: Patients in the experimental group were treated by ILLLI therapy after hospitalization. The therapy was administered once daily for 60 minutes in each session, for a total of 10 days for a treatment course. The irradiating power of the laser was 2.0-3.0 mW with a power density of 7.07-10.6 mW/mm2. Patients in the control group were treated with conventional therapy with algidon combined with buprenorphine hydrochloride. The 12 main symptoms(vomiting, goose pimples, sweating, agitation, shaking, lacrimation, nasal congestion, insomnia, abdominal pain,body temperature changes, muscular pain, and heart rate changes) were scored for 0, 1, 2, and 3 corresponding to absent, mild, moderate, and severe symptoms, with the total score of 36.MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Comparison of the scores for the withdrawal symptoms between the two groups.RESULTS: The 30 cases were all available for result analysis. The scores of vomiting, insomnia, agitation, shaking, goose pimples and abdominal pain in the experimental group were 2.0±0.5, 2.5±0.4,4.6±0.3,3.6±0.7,3.1±0.3 and 5.7±0.6 respectively, which were obviously lower than those in control group(5.1±0.7,6.0±0.7,7.4±0.6, 7.1±0.6,5.7±0.6 and 6.4 ±0.7 respectively, t =9.90-16. 81, P＜0.01).CONCLUSION: Intravascular low-level He-Ne laser irradiation can effectively relieve heroin withdrawal syndrome.

ObjectiveTo evaluate the clinical effectiveness and safety of acupuncture with manipulation for lumbar disc herniation in remission period. MethodsOne hundred and four patients with lumbar disc herniation in remission were randomly divided into a treatment group and a control group， with 52 cases in each group. Treatment group applied acupuncture with manipulation of pointing， pulling， and shaking. Acupoints were selected as lumbar Jiaji （EX-B2， bilateral）， Ashi point， Shenshu （BL 23， bilateral）， Huantiao （GB 30， bilateral）， Weizhong （BL 40， opposite side of the affected area）， Chengshan （BL 57， opposite side of the affected area）. The control group applied lumbar traction plus acupoint ultrasonic pulse penetration therapy （acupoints selection same as the treatment group）； 20 minutes each time， 3 times a week， a total of 3 weeks for both groups. The primary outcome was the improvement rate of lumbar disc herniation symptoms and signs， which was calculated at 1 week of treatment， 3 weeks of treatment， 1 month follow-up， and 3 months follow-up， respectively； the secondary outcome were the Japanese Orthopaedic Association （JOA） scores， Visual Analogue Scale （VAS） scores， and Oswestry Disability Index （ODI） scores （including ODI total scores， sitting scores and standing scores）， which were evaluated before treatment， 1 week of treatment， 3 weeks of treatment， 1 month follow-up， and 3 months follow-up； clinical effectiveness was assessed at 3 months follow-up； and the occurrence of adverse events in the participants， as well as blood routine， urine routine， stool routine， and electrocardiograms before and after the treatment were recorded to evaluate safety. ResultsTwo patients from each group fell out， and 50 patients of each group were included in the outcome analysis ultimately. The scores of lumbar disc herniation symptoms and signs improved more in the treatment group than in the control group at 1 week of treatment， 3 weeks of treatment， 1 month follow-up and 3 months follow-up （P＜0.01）. The JOA scores of participants in both groups at 1 week of treatment， 3 weeks of treatment， 1 month follow-up and 3 months follow-up were higher than those before treatment in the same group， and the VAS scores， ODI total scores， ODI sitting scores and standing scores were significantly lower than those before treatment in the same group （P＜0.05）， and the JOA scores of patients in the treatment group were higher than those of the control group at all time points， and the VAS scores， ODI total scores， ODI sitting scores and standing score were lower than those of the control group （P＜0.05）. At the 3 months follow-up， the excellent rate of the treatment group was 70.00% （35/50） better than that of the control group， which was 50.00% （25/50） （P＜0.05）. There were no abnormalities in blood， urine， stool routines and electrocardiograms before and after treatment in both groups， and no adverse events occurred. ConclusionAcupuncture with manipulation of pointing， pulling， and shaking for treating patients with lumbar disc herniation in remission has a better safety on pain relief and improving quality of life， and the effectiveness is better than lumbar traction plus acupoint ultrasonic pulse penetration therapy.

In the context of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), characterized by dysregulated lipid metabolism in hepatocytes, the quest for safe and effective therapeutics targeting lipid metabolism has gained paramount importance. Sanhuang Xiexin Tang (SXT) and Baihu Tang (BHT) have emerged as prominent candidates for treating metabolic disorders. SXT combined with BHT plus Cangzhu (SBC) has been used clinically for Weihuochisheng obese patients. This retrospective analysis focused on assessing the anti-obesity effects of SBC in Weihuochisheng obese patients. We observed significant reductions in body weight and hepatic lipid content among obese patients following SBC treatment. To gain further insights, we investigated the effects and underlying mechanisms of SBC in HFD-fed mice. The results demonstrated that SBC treatment mitigated body weight gain and hepatic lipid accumulation in HFD-fed mice. Pharmacological network analysis suggested that SBC may affect lipid metabolism, mitochondria, inflammation, and apoptosis-a hypothesis supported by the hepatic transcriptomic analysis in HFD-fed mice treated with SBC. Notably, SBC treatment was associated with enhanced hepatic mitochondrial biogenesis and the inhibition of the c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK)/nuclear factor-kappa B (NF-κB) and extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK)/NF-κB pathways. In conclusion, SBC treatment alleviates NAFLD in both obese patients and mouse models by improving lipid metabolism, potentially through enhancing mitochondrial biogenesis. These effects, in turn, ameliorate inflammation in hepatocytes.
Humans ; Mice ; Animals ; Non-alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease/metabolism* ; NF-kappa B/metabolism* ; Organelle Biogenesis ; Retrospective Studies ; Mice, Inbred C57BL ; Obesity/metabolism* ; Liver ; Inflammation/metabolism* ; Body Weight ; Lipid Metabolism ; Lipids ; Diet, High-Fat/adverse effects*