Objective:To observe the clinical efficacy of nape cluster acupuncture in treating migraine. Methods:Fifty patients with confirmed diagnosis of migraine were intervened by using nape cluster acupuncture, and were evaluated at the outset and after 2-month treatment by the short-form of McGill pain questionnaire (SP-MPQ) and self-rating depression scale (SDS). Results:After treatment, the number of positive words, sensory pain rating index (S-PRI), affective pain rating index (A-PRI), total pain rating index (T-PRI), visual analogue scale (VAS), and present pain intensity (PPI) were significantly changed (P<0.01); the SDS score was (56.42±8.12) points before treatment versus (41.08±5.73) points after treatment, and the difference was statistically significant (P<0.01). The total effective rate was 86.0%; the therapeutic efficacy of the patients with a shorter disease duration was superior to that of the patients with a longer one (P<0.05); the efficacy of mild-moderate migraine was superior to that of severe one (P<0.01); the total effective rate of patients without depression was higher than that with depression, but without a significant difference in comparing the therapeutic efficacy (P>0.05). Conclusion:Nape cluster acupuncture is effective in treating migraine, significantly improving headache and depression.

Objective:To observe the effect of nape acupuncture on vertebral-artery type cervical spondylosis.Methods:Eighty patients with vertebral-artery type cervical spondylosis were randomly divided into nape acupuncture group and Jiaji acupuncture group,with 40 cases in each group.The patients in the nape acupuncture group were treated with the nape acupuncture plus Jiaji acupuncture,while the patients in the Jiaji group were treated with Jiaji acupuncture only,to observe the functional scale before and after treatment.Results:The total effective rate in the nape acupuncture group was 95.0%,while the total effective rate in the Jiaji acupuncture group was 82.5%.By Ridit analysis,u=5.186,P＜0.01.It indicated that the therapeutic effect in the nape acupuncture group was better than that in the Jiaji acupuncture group.Compared with Jiaji acupuncture group,the difference value of pre- and post-treatment about functional scale of vertebral-artery type cervical spondylosis and the post-treatment score have statistic differences (P＜0.01).It indicated that the therapeutic effect of nape acupuncture group was more obvious in treating vertigo than that in the Jiaji acupuncture group.Conclusion:The treatment of vertebral-artery type cervical spondylosis by Jiaji acupuncture plus the nape acupuncture may enhance the therapeutic effect significantly.

Guasha(scraping) therapy falls into the category of non-medication therapy.It works well for insomnia in clinical practice.

This paper collects and analyzes 40 398 pieces of information from Chinese Modern Acupuncture Information Database (1970- 2002). It covers 93 articles concerning the treatment of chronic gastritis by acupuncture and 5 325 subjects, the total effective rate being 94.4%. The frequent treatment methods are needling, moxibustion, burial therapy, and hydropuncture. The major acupoints are Zusanli (ST 36), Zhongwan (CV 12), Weishu (BL 21),Pishu (BL20), Neiguan (PC 6), Ganshu (BL 18), Sanyinjiao (SP 6), etc. In the presence of severe stomachache, Liangqiu (ST 34) and Gongsun (SP 4) are added; in the presence of abdominal fullness, Tianshu (ST 25) and Qihai (CV 6) are added; in the presence of diarrhea, Tianshu (ST 25) and Shangjuxu (ST 37) are added; in the presence of vomiting, Shangwan (CV 13) and Taichong (LR 3) are added.

This paper makes a statistics on the literature concerning the treatment of asthma by acupuncture respectively from the Retrieval System of Acupoint Indications in Ancient Acupuncture Treatise and the Information Database of Modern Chinese Acupuncture, and compares the treatment methods between ancient and modern times, in an attempt to advance the common treatment principles and methods for asthma by acupuncture.

Objective To investigate the mechanism of brain injury caused by thrombin and the intervention effect of hirudin and nimodipine.Methods Different doses of thrombin or/and hirudin were injected into nucleus caudatus of SD rats,nimodipine was given intraperitoneally.Dry-wet-weighing technique,immunohistochemical method and TUNEL were used to examine brain edema,the changes of cytoskeleton,neuron apoptosis and histological changes.Results(1) High dose of thrombin resulted in severe cerebral edema as early as 4 h after injection and the maximum edema occurred at 24~48 h.The edema gradually decreased and got close to normal within 3~7 d.Cytoskeleton changes were observed at early stage(4h),reversible or irreversible injuries presented at 24~48 h,and neuron necrosis occurred within 3~7 d.Neuron apoptosis started at 4h and peaked at 24~48 h.In contrast,low dose of thrombin and normal saline did not show these effects.(2) The effects of thrombin could be inhibited by hirudin and nimodipine(a calcium-ion antagonist) could relieve or delay cell injury.Conclusions High dose of thrombin may result in severe brain edema,neuron irreversible injury and apoptosis,which all peak at 24~48 h.Early treatments could greatly reduce brain damage and improve prognosis of intracerebral hemorrhage.

To review the general situation of acupuncture in treating vascular headache between 1949-2004 in an attempt to promote acupuncture practice, clinical references concerning acupuncture treatment of vascular headache were analyzed on the basis of Chinese Modern Acupuncture Database. From 1956, these references increased annually and steadily. In clinical practice, needling is cardinally used, and the acupoints are selected adjacent to diseased part and on syndrome differentiation.

Immunoenhancement activity of bee pollen and its acetone extract was studied in normal, sarcoma-180 bearing, cyclophosphamide- and antilymphocyte serum-treated mice.Bee pollen and its acetone extract given orally for 30 days could significantly increase the production of serum anti-SRBC hemolysin (HC50) and the number of spleen plaque forming cells (PFC) in primary response to sheep red blood cell (SRBC) in young and adult mice. The acetone extract of bee pollen could significantly prevent the decrease of HC50) the number of PFC and specific rosette forming cells (SRFC), and the quantitative hemolysin of spleen cells (QHS) against SRBC in S-180 bearing, cyclophosphamide- and antilymphocyte serum-treated mice respectively.These results suggested that bee pollen of Brassica campestris L. and its acetone extract have immune-enhancement activity.

This paper statistically analyzes sixty-two articles concerning the treatment of obesity with acupuncture, and finds that the common therapy embraces needling, moxibustion, electroacupuncture, ear acupuncture, auricular application, auricular needle-embedding, acupoint application, acupoint embedding and combined methods of acupuncture. The frequent auricular acupoints are Stomach (MA-IC), Endocrine (MA-IC 3), Er Shenmen (MA-TF 1), Lung (MA-IC 1), Spleen (MA-IC), Hunger Point (MA-T) and Sanjiao (MA-IC 4). The clinical total effective rate was 75.8%.

This study was aimed to estimate the effect of different ProDisc-C arthroplasty designs after it was implanted to C5-C6 cervicalspine. Finite element (FE) model of intact C5-C6 segments including the vertebrae and disc was developed and validated. Ball-and-socket artificial disc prosthesis model (ProDisc-C, Synthes) was implanted into the validated FE model and the curvature of the ProDisc-C prosthesis was varied. All models were loaded with compressed force 74 N and the pure moment of 1.8 Nm along flexion-extension and bilateral bending and axial torsion separately. The results indicated that the variation in the curvature of ball and socket configuration would influence the range of motion in flexion/extension, while there were not apparently differences under other conditions of loads. The method increasing the curvature will solve the stress concentration of the polyethylene, but it will also bring adverse outcomes, such as facet joint force increasing and ligament tension increasing. Therefore, the design of artificial discs should be considered comprehensively to reserve the range of motion as well as to avoid the adverse problems, so as not to affect the long-term clinical results.
Arthroplasty ; Biomechanical Phenomena ; Finite Element Analysis ; Humans ; Intervertebral Disc ; Pressure ; Prostheses and Implants ; Range of Motion, Articular ; Spine ; Zygapophyseal Joint