OBJECTIVE: To observe the clinical effect of acupuncture-moxibustion therapy of Daoqi Tongluo (conducting qi and unblocking collateral) on chronic primary tinnitus. METHODS: A total of 32 patients with chronic primary tinnitus were included and treated with the acupuncture-moxibustion therapy of Daoqi Tongluo. This regimen was composed of abdominal acupuncture, body acupuncture, warm needling and posterior-auricular local flashing cupping, Zhongwan (CV12), Guanyuan (CV6) and Yindu (KI9), Tinggong (SI19), Cong'er point, Waiguan (TE5) of the affected side, etc. are selected. The treatment was given once every two days, 3 treatments a week; and one course of intervention was required, with 10 treatments included. Before and after treatment, the scores of tinnitus handicap inventory (THI), tinnitus evaluation questionnaire (TEQ), self-rating scale of sleep (SRSS), self-rating anxiety scale (SAS), and self-rating depression scale (SDS) were observed, and the clinical effect was evaluated. RESULTS: After interventions, the scores of THI, TEQ, SRSS, SAS and SDS were reduced in comparison with those before interventions in the patients (P<0.001, P<0.01, P<0.05), and the total effective rate was 71.9% (23/32). CONCLUSION Acupuncture-moxibustion therapy of Daoqi Tongluo is effective on chronic primary tinnitus and this therapy can alleviate tinnitus degree, improve sleep quality and attenuate the anxious and depressive emotion of the patients.
Adult ; Aged ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Young Adult ; Acupuncture Points ; Acupuncture Therapy ; Chronic Disease/therapy* ; Moxibustion ; Tinnitus/psychology* ; Treatment Outcome

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the efficacy of shockwave therapy, acupuncture, hyperthermia, biofeedback therapy, electrical nerve stimulation, magnetotherapy and ultrasound therapy in the treatment of chronic prostatitis/chronic pelvic pain syndrome(CP/CPPS), and to provide evidence-based support for clinical decision-making. METHODS: Two researchers independently searched PubMed, Web of Science, Embase, Cochrane Library, CNKI, Wanfang, VIP and Chinese Biomedical Literature databases for randomized controlled trials(RCTs) on the effects of different interventions on CP/CPPS from the establishment of the databases to August 2024. We evaluated the quality of the included literature and extracted the relevant data according to the Cochrane Handbook for Systematic Reviews of Interventions, followed by network meta-analysis using Revman 5.3, R 4.33 and Stata17 software. RESULTS: A total of 25 RCTs involving 1 794 cases were included. The results of network meta-analysis showed that electrical nerve stimulation, shockwave therapy, biofeedback therapy, magnetotherapy, ultrasound therapy and acupuncture were significantly superior to conventional medication and placebo in the total NIH-CPSI scores(P< 0.05), and so were electrical nerve stimulation and shockwave therapy to acupuncture and hyperthermia(P< 0.05), magnetic therapy to hyperthermia, and ultrasound therapy to placebo(P< 0.05). Shockwave therapy, biofeedback therapy, electrical nerve stimulation, magnetotherapy and ultrasound therapy achieved remarkably better clinical efficacy than conventional medication and placebo in the treatment of CP/CPPS, and so did shockwave therapy than electrical nerve stimulation, hyperthermia, ultrasonic therapy, magnetotherapy and acupuncture. CONCLUSION For the treatment of CP/CPPS, electrical nerve stimulation is advantageous over the other interventions in improving total NIH-CPSI scores, and shockwave therapy is advantageous in relieving pain symptoms and clinical efficacy. This conclusion, however, needs to be further verified by more high-quality clinical studies.
Humans ; Acupuncture Therapy ; Biofeedback, Psychology ; Chronic Disease ; Electric Stimulation Therapy ; Extracorporeal Shockwave Therapy ; Magnetic Field Therapy ; Pelvic Pain/therapy* ; Prostatitis/therapy* ; Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic ; Ultrasonic Therapy

OBJECTIVES: Older adults in rural areas with multiple chronic conditions (MCC) generally exhibit poorer medication adherence than the general elderly population. Considering individual heterogeneity helps to design precise subgroup-based interventions. This study aims to identify latent profile types of medication adherence mechanisms among rural older adults with MCC based on the capability-opportunity-motivation-behavior (COM-B) model, and to explore factors influencing medication adherence. METHODS: A multistage sampling method was used to recruit 349 rural older adults with MCC from 10 administrative villages in Jianghua County, Yongzhou City, Hunan Province, between July and September, 2024. Participants were surveyed using a general information questionnaire, the Health Literacy Scale for Chronic Patients, the Beliefs about Medicines Questionnaire-Specific, the Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support, and the Morisky Medication Adherence Scale. Latent profile analysis based on the COM-B model was conducted to identify subgroups of medication adherence mechanisms. Univariate and Logistic regression analyses were used to identify influencing factors associated with different latent profiles and adherence levels. RESULTS: Among the participants, 33.5% demonstrated good medication adherence. The 5 most prevalent chronic diseases were hypertension (86.5%), diabetes (36.7%), arthritis or rheumatism (34.4%), stroke (21.8%), and heart disease (17.5%). Overall, rural older adults with MCC exhibited relatively good medication capability, opportunity, and motivation. Their medication adherence mechanisms were classified into 3 latent profiles: "family-support restrained type" (5.2%), "family-support driven type" (52.1%), and "comprehensive advantage type" (42.7%). Significant differences were observed among the three profiles in terms of education level, marital status, living arrangement, and per capita monthly household income (all P<0.05). Multivariate Logistic regression revealed that higher education level was a protective factor for belonging to the "comprehensive advantage type" rather than the "family-support driven type" [OR=0.277, 95% CI (PL) 0.126 to 0.614, P=0.002]. Furthermore, significant differences in education level, self-rated health status, and latent profile type were found between participants with good and poor adherence (P<0.05). Binary Logistic regression indicated that with each one-level increase in self-rated health status, the risk of poor adherence increased by 293.9% [OR=3.939, 95% CI (PL) 1.610 to 9.636, P=0.003]. Compared with the "family-support restrained type", individuals classified as the "comprehensive advantage type" had a 96.8% [OR=0.032, 95% CI (PL) 0.008 to 0.123, P<0.001] lower risk of poor medication adherence. CONCLUSIONS The mechanisms underlying medication adherence among rural older adults with MCC show clear heterogeneity. Primary healthcare providers should focus on the "family-support restrained type" subgroup, strengthen social support networks, and implement targeted interventions to improve medication adherence.
Humans ; Aged ; Rural Population ; Male ; Female ; China ; Medication Adherence/psychology* ; Surveys and Questionnaires ; Chronic Disease/drug therapy* ; Multiple Chronic Conditions/drug therapy* ; Social Support ; Motivation ; Middle Aged ; Health Literacy ; Aged, 80 and over

OBJECTIVE: To understand the temporal trend of and the factors affecting depressive symptoms in Chinese menopausal women to provide evidence for the development of prevention and treatment strategies. METHODS: CHARLS data were used to select menopausal women aged 45-60 years. Complete values of the key variables were screened and missing values were removed to obtain the cross-sectional data of the years 2011 (n=4318), 2013 (n=4200), 2015 (n=3930), and 2018 (n= 4147). The panel data were matched by the cross-sectional data, and a total of 5040 cases with complete record of the follow-up data were obtained for the 4 years to constitute a balanced short panel dataset with n=1260 and T=4. The prevalence and temporal trend of depressive symptoms in the menopausal women were analyzed based on the panel data. The random-effects Logit model with a panel dichotomous choice model was used to explore the factors affecting depressive symptoms in the menopausal women. RESULTS: The prevalence of depressive symptoms in the menopausal women calculated based on the panel data was 35.9%, 33.1%, 36.7% and 43.7% in the 4 years, respectively, showing no statistically significant changes in the temporal trend (APC=3.25%, P=0.183). The results of the random-effects Logit model analysis showed that living in the urban area (OR=0.570, 95%CI: 0.457-0.710), a high education level (OR=0.759, 95%CI: 0.655-0.879), and having a spouse (OR=0.363, 95% CI: 0.236-0.558) were associated with a decreased incidence of depressive symptoms, while poor self-reported health (OR= 2.704, 95% CI: 2.152-3.396), disability (OR=1.457, 95%CI: 1.087-1.954), chronic disease (OR=1.407, 95% CI: 1.179-1.680), falls in the last two years (OR=2.028, 95% CI: 1.613-2.550), abnormal sleep duration (OR=2.249, 95% CI: 1.896-2.664), and dissatisfaction with life (OR=4.803, 95% CI: 3.757-6.140) were associated with an increased incidence of depressive symptoms. CONCLUSION The prevalence of depressive symptoms is relatively high in menopausal women in China. Measures should be taken to ensure that the menopausal women living in rural areas, with low education level, without spouse, with a poor self-reported health status, disability, chronic diseases, falls in recent two years, abnormal sleep time and dissatisfaction with life have access to psychological health care services and interventions.
China/epidemiology* ; Chronic Disease ; Cross-Sectional Studies ; Depression/psychology* ; Female ; Hot Flashes/psychology* ; Humans ; Menopause/psychology*

BACKGROUND: We evaluated the effects of socioeconomic factors and psychosocial factors, both individually and combined, on all-cause mortality risk (mortality risk). METHODS: We conducted an 8-year (2006–2014) longitudinal analysis of 10,247 individuals who took part in the Korean Longitudinal Study of Aging, a nationwide survey of people aged 45–79 years. Socioeconomic vulnerability (SEV) was assessed with factors such as education, household income, commercial health insurance, and residential area. Mental health (MH) was assessed with factors such as depression, social engagement, and life satisfaction. The covariates were age, gender, marital status, cohabiting, number of chronic diseases, and health behaviors such as regular exercise, smoking, and alcohol intake. We used a Cox proportional hazard analysis to investigate the effects of SEV and MH on mortality risk and also to analyze the superimposed effects of SEV-MH on mortality risk. RESULTS: After the controlling for the covariates, high SEV and negative MH were found to be strong predictors of all-cause mortality. The highest quartile of SEV (vs. lowest) had a 1.70 times greater mortality risk (hazard ratio [HR], 1.70; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.24–2.33) and the highest quartile of MH (vs. lowest) had a 2.13 times greater mortality risk (HR, 2.13; 95% CI, 1.72–2.64). Being in the highest quartile for both SEV and MH (vs. lowest) increased mortality risk more than 3 times (HR, 3.11; 95% CI, 2.20–4.40). CONCLUSION: High SEV and negative MH were independently associated with increased mortality risk, and their superimposed effects were associated with an increased risk of mortality.
Aging ; Chronic Disease ; Depression ; Education ; Family Characteristics ; Health Behavior ; Insurance, Health ; Longitudinal Studies ; Marital Status ; Mental Health ; Mortality ; Psychology ; Smoke ; Smoking ; Socioeconomic Factors

PURPOSE: This study investigated the relationship between chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and metabolic syndrome (MetS), focusing on gender differences and using large-scale data on the Korean general population. METHODS: The total sample included 9,079 eligible participants aged ≥ 40 years who participated in the fifth Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, conducted between 2010 and 2012. Complex sampling methods, including strata sampling, clustering, and sample weighting were used to allow generalization of the findings to the Korean population. For the bivariate analysis, chi-square tests were conducted to compare differences in general/behavioral characteristics, individual MetS components, the prevalence of COPD, and the number of MetS components according to the presence or absence of COPD and gender. Finally, a multiple logistic regression analysis adjusted for variables was conducted. RESULTS: The prevalence rates of COPD and MetS were 13.6% and 26.0%, respectively. The prevalence rate of MetS in the COPD group was 23.0% for the total sample, 18.5% for men, and 38.5% for women. After sample weighting and adjusting for covariates, there were no significant relationships among COPD, MetS, and the individual MetS components. CONCLUSION: Although MetS components were not significantly associated with COPD, the results indicate that health care professionals should recognize that two conditions, respiratory symptoms and MetS, may coexist in patients, women in particular, or healthy general populations encountered even if a patient has a normal body mass index and does not drink or smoke at all.
Body Mass Index ; Delivery of Health Care ; Female ; Generalization (Psychology) ; Humans ; Korea ; Logistic Models ; Male ; Nutrition Surveys ; Prevalence ; Pulmonary Disease, Chronic Obstructive ; Sex Characteristics ; Smoke

BACKGROUND: Inpatient suicide is one of the major issues related with hospital patient safety. Although there are many studies addressing suicide in the psychiatric unit, little is known about suicide in a medical setting. This study included the development and validation of a screening tool for the assessment of suicide risk, specialized for medical inpatients. METHODS: The preliminary questionnaire was based on review of previous suicide ideation scales, mood scales, and clinical experiences of psychiatrists and clinical psychologists in Korea. Initially, the questionnaire consisted of 12 questions. One hundred adult medical inpatients were asked to perform the questionnaire. Explorative factor analysis was used to examine construct validity. Concurrent validity was evaluated by comparison with the Korean versions of the Beck Scale for Suicide Ideation (BSI), the Beck Hopelessness Scale (BHS), and the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS). RESULTS: Five questions were removed from the preliminary questionnaire by explorative factor analysis and seven questions remained to comprise the Suicide Risk Scale for Medical inpatients (SRSM). Explorative factor analysis showed that the SRSM is composed of a single factor. SRSM was highly reliable in terms of internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha 0.91). Concurrent validity with the BSI, BHS, and HADS was statistically significant. The proposed cut-off score of the SRSM was five. CONCLUSION: In conclusion, the SRSM is a valid and reliable measure for screening suicide risks in medical inpatients.
Adult ; Anxiety ; Chronic Disease ; Depression ; Humans ; Inpatients ; Korea ; Mass Screening ; Patient Safety ; Primary Health Care ; Psychiatry ; Psychology ; Suicide ; Weights and Measures

Objective: To understand the status, attitude and related risk factors on smoking among 18-65 years old patients with hypertension, diabetes, dyslipidemia, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) or asthma in Beijing. Methods: Data was gathered from the 2014 Beijing Non-communicable and Chronic Disease Surveillance Program. Multiple classified cluster sampling method was used and 19 815 participants aged 18-65 were sampled from 16 districts in Beijing. Results: Among all the 18 405 participants, male hypertensive patients showed a higher rate on current smoking than the other groups (χ(2)=17.695, P<0.001). Male patients with dyslipidemia had higher current smoking rate than the other groups (χ(2)=39.292, P<0.001). However, female patients with COPD or with asthma showed higher rate on current smoking than the other groups (χ(2)=6.276, P=0.012), (χ(2)=8.245, P=0.004). Among the smokers, hypertensive patients presented lower rate (χ(2)=20.487, P<0.001) on intention of smoking concession, than the other groups. Patients with COPD showed greater intention in quitting smoking (χ(2)=6.085, P=0.048), than the other groups. Male patients with diabetes (χ(2)=9.219, P=0.010) or dyslipidemia (χ(2)=13.513, P=0.001) who had stopped smoking tobacco appeared having higher rates in keeping the current status. Results from logistic regression analyses showed that smoking was the risk factor for hypertension (OR=1.17), dyslipidemia (OR=1.25), COPD (OR=1.78), and asthma (OR=1.57). Conclusions: Patients with certain kinds of chronic diseases showed higher rate of current smoking and lower rate of quitting. Cigarette consumption appeared an important risk factor for patients with hypertension, dyslipidemia, COPD, or asthma in Beijing.
Adolescent ; Adult ; Aged ; Asthma/epidemiology* ; Beijing/epidemiology* ; Chronic Disease/epidemiology* ; Diabetes Mellitus/epidemiology* ; Female ; Humans ; Hypertension/epidemiology* ; Intention ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Pulmonary Disease, Chronic Obstructive/epidemiology* ; Risk Factors ; Smokers ; Smoking/psychology* ; Smoking Cessation ; Nicotiana/adverse effects*

COPD refers to a group of chronic respiratory diseases which seriously influence the people's health and life quality. The national COPD surveillance in China has been implemented since 2014 with the goal of monitoring the prevalence and trend of COPD and related risk factors in China. The paper summarizes the item and method of national COPD surveillance in China.
Aged ; China/epidemiology* ; Chronic Disease/psychology* ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Population Surveillance/methods* ; Prevalence ; Pulmonary Disease, Chronic Obstructive/psychology* ; Quality of Life ; Risk Factors

The “Barker hypothesis” postulates that a number of organ structures and associated functions undergo programming during embryonic and fetal life, which determines the set point of physiological and metabolic responses that carry into adulthood. Hence, any stimulus or insult at a critical period of embryonic and fetal development can result in developmental adaptations that produce permanent structural, physiological and metabolic changes, thereby predisposing an individual to cardiovascular, metabolic and endocrine disease in adult life. This article will provide evidence linking these diseases to fetal undernutrition and an overview of previous studies in this area as well as current advances in understanding the mechanism and the role of the placenta in fetal programming.
Adult ; Chronic Disease ; Critical Period (Psychology) ; Embryonic and Fetal Development ; Endocrine System Diseases ; Fetal Development* ; Fetal Nutrition Disorders ; Humans ; Malnutrition ; Placenta