At the symposium, "The Power of Moxibustion", four panelists discussed the mechanism, clinical effectiveness, and current conception of moxibustion in Japan with an aim to explore the potential role of moxibustion in the future.
Mika Ohta noted that a bioinformatics approach could select basic research for the effectiveness of moxibustion. She also reported an example result of bioinformatic analysis focusing on the "heat"which can be produced by moxibustion and it can predict the mechanism of moxibustion.
Keiko Tsujiuchi, an acupuncture and moxibustion practitioner, has been promoting moxibustion since 1980s.She has engaged in clinical research on obstetrics and reported a variety of favorable outcomes from using moxibustion in that field.
Motoko Otsuka presented Ehime's cultural inheritance of moxibustion as a "healing tradition."She reported cases in which the patients received important interventions from moxibustion for their life, measured by chronological analysis, by introducing clinical practice including acupuncture and moxibustion treatment in the Acupuncture and Moxibustion Care Unit, East Asian Traditional Medicine, Ehime Prefectural Central Hospital, and instruction in self-moxibustion at the Perinatal Medical Center for mother and child health.
Sachiko Y. Itaya, from the United States, reported activities and results of Moxafrica, which is using direct Moxibustion as an adjunctive treatment for tuberculosis in South Africa and Uganda. She emphasized that the role of moxibustion could be expanded much further as shown by the achievements of Moxafrica.

We evaluated the effects of self­care with indirect moxibustion (moxibustion group : MG) on hiesho (cold disorder) in mature females in a prospective multicenter randomized controlled trial using leg warmers (leg warmers group : LG) as a control. Subjects were 49 women aged 18 to 39 years who were judged to suffer from hiesho as measured by the hiesho sensation scale (Kusumi and Emori). Subjects were sorted by age and block-­randomized at each of the four facilities. Before going to bed, subjects in the MG (N = 25) performed two moxibustions on both sides of kI 1, SP 6, and ST 36. Subjects in the LG (N = 24) wore leg warmers while sleeping. Each intervention lasted for one month. The primary endpoint was the degree of hiesho by visual analogue scale (VAS) ; secondary endpoints were mainly suffering scores for comorbid symptoms and body temperature difference between forehead and peripheries. Two subjects in the LG dropped out due to preg­nancy and skin pruritus, respectively. The change in VAS and suffering scores was larger in the MG, showing small ES in VAS and medium ES in suffering scores. Body temperature difference between the forehead and LI 4 on both sides was reduced in the MG, and medium ES was observed. It was suggested that self-care of indirect moxibustion for hiesho in mature females could reduce the degree of hiesho and comorbid symptoms, and could suppress the expansion of body temperature difference between forehead and peripheries compared to wearing leg warmers.

[Background] Moxibustion has contributed to better health outcomes of the Japanese people. But only a small number of reports are available regarding the current practice of moxibustion in recent years. We therefore surveyed moxibustion practitioners.[Methods] Through academic societies, professional organizations, and other associations related to the disciplines of acupuncture and moxibustion, practitioners were asked to respond to the questionnaire via Google Forms. [Results] Valid responses were obtained from 1,507 practitioners with the following demographics: 67.8% had been engaged in clinical practice for less than 20 years; 71.9% ran their own clinics; 43.6% belonged to academic societies; 69.3% belonged to industrial organizations, etc. The proportion of practitioners conducting various methods of moxibustion were as follows: 66.3% warming moxibustion and 53.4% for heating-through moxibustion, and regarding processed moxibustion, 79.5% included moxibustion with tube and 37.0% used smokeless moxibustion. Regarding the effectiveness of moxibustion, 98.9% responded as "highly effective" or "moderately effective." The proportion of respondents who experienced "patient's refusal of moxibustion" was 45.6% before patients experienced moxibustion and 33.2% after their experience. The patients refused it primarily because of "heat," "burns," and "uncomfortableness with smoke." Regarding the activities necessary to promote the spread of self-care moxibustion, "proving effectiveness through clinical research" (75.6%), "providing scientific evidence through basic research" (68.3%), and "awareness-building activities" (63.9%) were indicated among 1,495 respondents.[Discussion] The survey revealed that, due to the shift in societal awareness, there is also a shift in the use of moxibustion from direct moxibustion to more indirect moxibustion. Many clinical practitioners of moxibustion conducted the therapy because they considered it effective. The survey reconfirmed that heat, burns, and smoke represent major reasons why patients do not want to receive the moxibustion therapy. The challenging issues to be addressed for the purpose of spreading and developing moxibustion include maintenance of "safety," research to prove "clinical efficacy" and provide "scientific evidence," and "awareness-building activities."

[Aim] We compared the effects of acupuncture and press tuck needle (PTN) acupuncture in office workers with physical and psychological fatigue.[Design] A randomized, open-label, parallel-group, comparison study.[Setting] An acupuncture room in the A Clinic within the Kanto Metropolitan Area.[Patients] Clinic workers. The inclusion criteria were 20-45 years of age and awareness of physical and psychological fatigue. The exclusion criteria were fatigue-related diseases and symptoms, medical abnormalities, and history.[Intervention] The subjects were randomly allocated to either the acupuncture treatment group (ACP group) or PTN acupuncture treatment group (PTN group). The interventions were based on acupoints for fatigue symptoms as per previous reports and individualized treatment for physical symptoms, including neck and lower back pain, among others, and were performed twice a week for one month.[Evaluation methods] The visual analog scale (VAS) scores were the primary method for evaluating for physical and psychological fatigue at four weeks post-treatment. Other forms of measurement used were the VAS scores within groups immediately after treatment and to evaluate physical health, the Health Perceptions Questionnaire, General Health Questionnaire-12, and Short Form-36 responses; and salivary amylase levels were used.[Results] Thirteen of 14 subjects in the ACP group and 13 of 15 in the PTN group were included in the analysis. There was no significant difference between the groups for VAS scores. Evaluation, immediately before and after the intervention showed a significant decrease in VAS scores for physical fatigue in both groups. The ACP group showed a greater immediate change than the PTN group. In a comparison within each group, the VAS of psychological fatigue in the PTN group showed significant decrease after the eighth treatment.[Conclusions] Acupuncture may immediately improve physical fatigue in office workers. Moreover, the frequency of using PTN acupuncture may eventually decrease physical fatigue. Therefore, acupuncture and PTN acupuncture can help office workers' health.