Looking back upon the history of Japanese acupuncture and moxibustion from the Meiji era to the present day, this study (research paper) confirms the changes in Japanese acupuncture and moxibustion according to certain points of specific features such as the education system and the progress, and growth of medical study.

Four fibromyalgia syndrome (FMS) patients with complaints of widespread pain, fatigue and difficulty sleeping received acupuncture therapy. The effects of acupuncture treatment were evaluated using a visual analogue scale (VAS), and a pain disability assessment scale (PDAS). After whole body acupuncture treatments, VAS and PDAS values were almost unchanged. However, VAS and PDAS values improved following a 3-treatment course of FMS-specific acupuncture treatments (electroacupuncture at the characteristic tender points of FMS). These results suggest that FMS-specific acupuncture treatment of fibromyalgia patients may relieve their commonly reported symptoms of pain, and fatigue.

The elderly comprise a high proportion of Japan's population (29% in fiscal year 2023), which is predicted to rise gradually into the future. The so-called '3Ms' are the factors considered to impair quality of life (QOL) in elderly persons, namely: "Mobility disorders: fall/non-ambulatory"; "Mentality disorders: cognitive disorder/dementia"; and "Micturition disorders：frequent urination/incontinence". Patients with micturition disorders are treated with drugs in Western medicine, but many still have complaints. The usefulness of acupuncture for the treatment of urination disorders will be reported based on the results of basic research using a pathology model. The clinical effect of acupuncture stimulation will be reported mainly for overactive bladder, a symptom characterized by the main complaints of frequent urination/feeling of urinary urgency. Basic research showed that acupuncture stimulation to the sacral area suppressed "non-voiding contractions (NVCs) not resulting in urination". Acupuncture stimulation of BL33/CV3 in patients with overactive bladder alleviated symptoms of urinary urgency/frequent urination/nocturnal frequent urination. Acupuncture stimulation of BL33 was postulated to relax tension of the bladder by improving bladder compliance.

[Objective]To clarify the effects of electroacupuncture (EA) on the menstrual cycle at puberty, we investigated whether or not EA influences the menstrual cycle, the number of ovulations, and the duration of the high-temperature phase. Also we investigated the improvement of menstrual disorder and changes in body mass index (BMI) by EA treatment.
[Methods]Twenty-five female students participated in this study.
Non-treatment periods from three to four months were evaluated before EA treatment. During treatment, EA was performed once a week. We compared the menstrual cycle, the number of ovulations, and the duration of the high temperature phase for non-treatment and EA treatment periods. To evaluate the relation between BMI and improvement of menstrual disorder by EA, female students were divided into two groups, improvement or not-improvement group.
[Results]Twenty female students were analyzed in this study. In those with extended periods of amenorrhea, the menstrual cycle became significantly shorter during EA (P< 0.001). In those with polymenorrhea, the menstrual cycle became significantly longer during EA (P< 0.05), reaching a normal cycle length. Improvement of the menstrual cycle was found in 30.0%of the subjects. However, an increase in the number of ovulations and extended duration of the high temperature phase were found in 20.0%and 25.0%of the subjects, respectively. Although BMI did not vary significantly between the improvement and the not-improvement groups, the percentage of those with normal weight tended to be higher in the improvement group than in the not-improvement group.
[Conclusion]These findings suggest that EA influences follicular growth. However, it had been thought that EA could not influence ovulation or affect luteal function. Additionally, when BMI is nearly normal, it appears more likely that acupuncture is effective for menstrual disorder at puberty.

[Objective]To evaluate the effectiveness of moxibustion treatment for patients with nocturia in a randomized controlled trial.
[Methods]Subjects were 36 patients with refractory nocturia, randomly allocated to a moxibustion group (n = 20) and a sham moxibustion group (n = 16). Moxibustion treatment to Chung-Chi (CV3) was performed three times/day for one week by the patients themselves. The average number of nocturia in the week before and the week during moxibustion treatment were compared between groups.
[Results]The average number of nocturia during moxibustion was significantly decreased in the moxibustion group compared to that before treatment. No significant change was seen in the sham moxibustion group.
[Conclusion]Moxibustion treatment appears to reduce the average number of nocturia. Moxibustion to Chung-Chi seems to represent an effective therapeutic option for nocturia.

[Purpose]The reason is uncertain though it is assumed that to young people that there are a lot of Temporomandibular disorders (TMD). Then, the questionnaire survey concerning the mandible function was administered for university students, and the clinical trial of the acupuncture treatment that used sham acupuncture for the one where the problem was seen in the mandible function was tried.
[Method]We questioned students at Meiji University of Integrative Medicine by answer selection type concerning the mandible function. The acupuncture treatment was done on 16 students (21.5 ± 1.7 years old;mean ±S.D.) who had problems in the mandible function. The group was divided into two groups (the acupuncture group and the sham acupuncture group) at random. Each group received five acupuncture treatment sessions several times week in total. Outcome measures were pain intensity (visual analogue scale) and function of jaw (mouth opening and muscle power). Each evaluation was assumed to be done before beginning the treatment, and the effect of treatment was assumed to be the one evaluated as a therapeutic gain after one week.
[Result]University students who had some problem in the mandible function were 50%or more of the whole, and a lot of problems were joint noises. On the other hand, the acupuncture group was 67.1 ± 19.1 mm and the sham group was 65.6 ± 15.2 mm. Both groups showed reduction tendencies as the acupuncture group was 9.3± 7.8 mm and the sham group was 40.5 ± 16.7 mm. The acupuncture group reported less pain intensity than the sham acupuncture group (p = 0.0152, Mann-Whitney). However, the true and sham acupuncture groups did not change the function of the jaw.
[Conclusion]A lot of university students who had mandible function problems were unexpectedly regarded as necessary to treat at the early stage. On the other hand, these results suggest that true acupuncture procedures may be more effective on TMD in young patients than sham acupuncture procedures.

[Objective]Acupuncture has been reported to be useful for temporomandibular disorders. There have been many reports on muscle problems in temporomandibular disorders (TMD) but only a few reports on disc problems. We report on the use of acupuncture in a temporomandibular disorder patient with disc disorders.
[Case]A 19-year-old female complained of pain upon opening her mouth and trismus. We applied acupuncture with the aim of resolving the disc problems and providing analgesia by a contributing muscle needling approach.
[Methods]The following were measured:intensity of jaw pain, anxiety and satisfaction (visual analogue scale:VAS), position and form of disc and caput mandibulae (MRI) and presence of jaw deviation.
[Results]The following were improved after acupuncture treatments:intensity of jaw pain, anxiety and satisfaction, limitation of jaw movement and jaw deviation. However, the positions of the discs did not change.
[Conclusion]These results suggest that acupuncture may be effective for temporomandibular disorder patients with disc disorders.

The lower one-third point of a line connecting the posterior superior iliac spine and the middle of the lower margin of the ischial tuberosity is used as the acupuncture point to the pudendal nerve. The present study anatomically examined the positional relation between a needle inserted in the acupuncture point and the pudendal nerve as well as examined the projection region of the nerve to the body surface, using the bilateral pudendal nerves of 18 Japanese cadavers.
The needle inseted in the acupuncture point to the pudendal nerve missed the nerve caudally or laterocaudally in many cases, but with twelve cases directly pricking the caudal portion of the nerve. The pudendal nerve lying on the sacrospinous ligament was projected just on or lateral to a line connecting the posterior superior iliac spine and the medial edge of the lower margin of the ischial tuberosity, and in rostro-caudal direction the pudendal nerve was situated in a range 50 to 60% from the top of that line. The height of the sacral cornua corresponded to that of the rostral half of the pudendal nerve lying on the sacrospinous ligament or that more rostral than the rostral tip of the nerve, and the height of the lower tip of the coccyx corresponded to that more caudal than the caudal tip of the nerve.