OBJECTIVE: To analyze the rules of moxibustion for low back pain by ZHOU Meisheng by using data mining and knowledge graph technology. METHODS: Taking the medical cases of moxibustion for low back pain from ZHOU Meisheng's legacy manuscripts and existing works as the research objects, information on disease types, symptoms, tongue manifestations, pulse conditions, syndrome patterns, moxibustion methods and acupoints were collected. Frequency statistics and community analysis were conducted by the ancient and modern medical record cloud platform V 2.3.7, cluster analysis of high-frequency acupoints was performed by SPSS26.0, association rule analysis of high-frequency acupoints was performed by SPSS Modeler 18.0, and the generated linked data were imported into Cytoscape 3.9.1 for complex network analysis. Knowledge graph of moxibustion for low back pain by ZHOU Meisheng was constructed based on the results of data mining. The data storage and display of knowledge graph were realized through the Neo4j 3.5.25 graph database, and the Cypher query language was used for knowledge graph retrieval and discovery. RESULTS: A total of 219 medical cases were collected, involving 14 disease types, 85 related clinical symptoms, 5 related TCM syndrome types, and 6 moxibustion methods. The acupoints were mostly attributed to the governor vessel, the bladder meridian of foot-taiyang, non-meridian and non-acupoint areas. The core prescription of acupoints derived from complex network analysis included tender points, Shenshu (BL23), Jinsuo (GV8), Yinjiao (CV7), Yaoyangguan (GV3), Yanglingquan (GB34), which were largely coincides with high-frequency acupoints. Cluster analysis obtained 4 cluster combinations. Community analysis yielded 6 communities, each corresponding to different acupoints.The constructed knowledge graph contained 187 nodes and 696 relationships, by retrieving clinical elements related to low back pain, the disease-moxibustion association graph, disease-acupoint association graph, accompanying symptom-acupoint association graph and syndrome type-matching point association graph were obtained. CONCLUSION When treating low back pain with moxibustion, ZHOU Meisheng adopts the principle of promoting circulation, distinguishing diseases to determine the treatment, selecting acupoints according to the diseases, and matching points according to the symptoms.And taking tender points, Shenshu (BL23), Jinsuo (GV8), Yinjiao (CV7), Yaoyangguan (GV3), Yanglingquan (GB34) as core acupoints, combined with tenderness point selection, acupoint selection based on meridian and zangfu syndrome differentiation, "sunshine area" acupoint selection, yin-yang acupoint matching. Additionally, he skillfully employs special points, such as Zhongzhu (KI15) and ear tips, pays attention to the reform of moxibustion tools, and innovates the moxibustion techniques, using distinctive moxibustion tools and methods to treat low back pain.
Moxibustion/methods* ; Humans ; Data Mining ; Low Back Pain/history* ; Acupuncture Points ; History, Ancient ; Female ; China ; Male ; Adult ; Middle Aged

STUDY DESIGN: Retrospective series. PURPOSE: Assess results of decompression-only surgery for low-grade degenerative spondylolisthesis with consideration of instability. OVERVIEW OF LITERATURE: There is no consensus on whether fusion or decompression-only surgery leads to better outcomes for patients with low-grade degenerative spondylolisthesis. Current trends support fusion but many studies are flawed due to over-generalization without consideration of radiological instability and their variable presentations and natural history. METHODS: Patients with surgically treated degenerative spondylolisthesis from 1990-2013 were included. Clinical and radiological instability measures were included. Any residual or recurrence of symptoms, revision surgery performed and functional outcome scores including the numerical global rate of change scale, visual analogue scale, and modified Barthel index were measured. Follow-up periods for patients were divided into short-term (<5 years), mid-term (5-10 years) and long-term (>10 years). RESULTS: A total of 64 patients were recruited. Mechanical low back pain was noted in 48 patients and most (85.4%) had relief of back pain postoperatively. Radiological instability was noted in 4 subjects by flexion-extension radiographs and 12 subjects with prone traction radiographs by increased disc height and reduction of olisthesis and slip angle. From the results of the short-term, mid-term and long-term follow-up, reoperation only occurred within the first 5-year follow-up period. All functional scores improved from preoperative to postoperative 1-year follow-up. CONCLUSIONS: Decompression-only for low-grade degenerative spondylolisthesis has good long-term results despite instability. Further higher-level studies should be performed on this patient group with radiological instability to suggest the superior surgical option.
Back Pain ; Consensus ; Decompression* ; Follow-Up Studies ; Humans ; Low Back Pain ; Natural History ; Recurrence ; Reoperation ; Retrospective Studies ; Spondylolisthesis* ; Traction

In clinical treatment, it is found that certain patients always have some positive reaction points those are relevant with low back pain in the abdomen area. When the simple treatment on the low back is ineffective, the efficacy could be significantly improved if acupuncture or tuina is performed at the abdomen areas, which is called "regulating yin to treat yang", or "treating the back from abdomen". In this paper, with the diagnosis and treatment method of "treating the back from abdomen" for low back pain as principal line, the detailed manipulation is explained for low back pain that is induced by TCM meridian diseases or modern anatomy, which could open the methods for clinical treatment of low back pain and enrich the therapeutic options.
Abdomen ; anatomy & histology ; Acupuncture Points ; Acupuncture Therapy ; history ; China ; History, Ancient ; Humans ; Low Back Pain ; history ; therapy ; Massage ; history ; Medicine in Literature ; Meridians

PURPOSE: To compare lumbar disc changes between initial lumbar spine (L-spine) MRI and follow-up (f/u) MRI that were performed due to recurred backaches. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A total 50 patients who had undergone f/u L-spine MRI were retrospectively reviewed. Five discs (L1-S1) were surveyed in each f/u MRI. Lumbar disc changes were defined as no change, aggravations, or improvements compared to initial disc states. These states were defined on the basis of morphologic status and disc levels. RESULTS: In a total of 250 discs in 50 patients, 31 discs (12.4%) showed morphologic changes of disc lesions, whereas 219 discs (87.6 %) showed no changes. Among the 31 disc lesions, 24 were aggravated and 7 were partially improved. And on the basis of disc status, initially abnormal discs revealed any morphologic changes of the degree of disc herniation. A total of 33.3% of the morphologic changes are noted in initially extruded discs. Fifteen morphologic changes of disc lesions were located at the L4-5 level. CONCLUSION: Our results suggest that correlations between lumbar disc herniations and back pain symptoms are limited, and that evaluations of extra disc lesions are required.
Back Pain ; Follow-Up Studies ; Humans ; Intervertebral Disc ; Low Back Pain ; Natural History ; Retrospective Studies ; Spine

The recently increasing interest in historical records has led to more research on historical records in various fields of study. This trend has also affected medical research, with the medical climate and popular treatment modalities of the past now being revealed based on historical records. However, most research on medical history during the Joseon era has been based on the most well-known record, Joseon wangjo sillok or Annals of the Joseon Dynasty. Joseon wangjo sillok is a comprehensive and organized record of society during the Joseon era and contains key knowledge about medical history during the period, but it lacks details on the treatment of common disorders at the time. Seungjeongwon ilgi or Diary of the Royal Secretariat has detailed records of daily events and is a valuable resource for the daily activities of the era. And in the middle Josoen era, a variety of medical books - especially Donguibogam - was published. Therefore, the authors focused on the under-researched Seungjeongwon ilgi, Donguibogam and attempted to assess and evaluate low back pain treatment performed on Joseon royalty. The most notable characteristic of low back treatment records within the Seungjeongwon ilgi is that diagnosis and treatment was made based on an independent Korean medicine, rather than conventional Chinese medicine. This paradigm shift is represented in Dongeuibogam, and can be seen in the close relationship between Dongeuibogam and national medical exams of the day. Along with the pragmatism of the middle Joseon era, medical treatment also put more focus on pragmatic treatment methods, and records show emphasis on acupuncture and moxibustion and other points in accord with this. The authors also observed meaning and limitations of low back pain treatment during that era through comparison with current diagnosis and treatment.
Acupuncture Therapy/history/methods ; History, 17th Century ; History, 18th Century ; Humans ; Low Back Pain/etiology/*history/therapy ; Medicine, Korean Traditional/history ; Moxibustion/history/methods

Although most authors regard contralateral pedicular fracture with unilateral spondylolysis as an unstable condition and recommend surgical management when immobilization fails in promoting bony healing of the fracture, few researchers have investigated the natural history of pedicle fracture or the causal relationship between symptoms and the fracture. In addition, there are no detailed guidelines that address the management of this disease. We report a rare case of contralateral pedicular fracture associated with unilateral spondylolysis at the L5 level which was successfully treated by rehabilitation with activity modification.
Fractures, Stress ; Immobilization ; Low Back Pain ; Lumbar Vertebrae ; Natural History ; Spondylolysis

Discal cysts are rare lesions that can cause radiating leg pain. Because they are very rare, their natural history and the details of the therapeutic guidelines for the treatment of these cysts are still unknown. A 30-year-old male patient presented to our institute with radiating pain in his left leg and mild back pain. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) revealed an intraspinal extradural cystic mass with low signal intensity on T1-weighted images and high signal intensity on T2-weighted images at the L5-S1 level. The partial hemilaminectomy and cyst resection were performed. We report a patient with low back pain and radiating leg pain caused by a lumbar discal cyst and discuss the treatment of this cyst.
Adult ; Back Pain ; Humans ; Leg ; Low Back Pain ; Magnetic Resonance Imaging ; Male ; Natural History ; Spine

PURPOSE: This research was conducted to compare the effects of drug therapy, physical therapy, and exercise on pain, disability, and depression in patients with chronic low back pain. METHODS: The research design of this study was a nonequivalent control group pretest-posttest design. The subjects of this study were 28 patients for the drug therapy & physical therapy, 24 patients for the drug therapy & exercise, and 22 patients for the physical therapy & exercise. Data was collected by MVAS, Oswestry disability questionnaires, and questionnaires of depression. It was analyzed by paired t-test for effectiveness, ANOVA, and Scheffe for comparison of the effects of the 3 experimental treatments, using SPSS/WIN 12.0. RESULTS: There were no effects of drug therapy & physical therapy on pain, disability, and depression. However, there were effects of drug therapy & exercise and the physical therapy & exercise on pain, disability, and depression. The effects of physical therapy & exercise on pain, disability, and depression were the greatest, but there was no statistically significant differences between the drug therapy & exercise and the physical therapy & exercise. CONCLUSIONS: Exercise is regarded as a more effective and easily accessible nursing intervention to apply alone than drug therapy or physical therapy simultaneously in reducing pain, disability and depression.
Adult ; Depression ; Disability Evaluation ; *Exercise Therapy ; History, Ancient ; Humans ; Low Back Pain/drug therapy/nursing/*therapy ; Male ; Models, Nursing ; Pain ; *Physical Therapy Modalities ; Questionnaires

Spondylolisthesis is the slippage of all or part of one vertebra onto another. The term is derived from the Greek words spondylos and olisthesis. Wiltse, Macnab, and Newman combined their concepts in what remains the most widely accepted classification. Wiltse and Rothman in 1989 suggested a common congenital component in the etiology of dysplastic and isthmic types and added the postsurgical group to the original classification. The precise anatomy of the pars lesion is extremely important in understanding the pathogenesis. The pars interarticularis is the connecting link between pedicles, transverse processes, laminae, and the two articular facets acting as the pivot center. The L5-S1 articulation, being in the coronal plane, is more stable than the sagittal placement of the L4-5 facet joint. The fifth lumbar vertebra is stabilized by a large L5 transverse process, which supports strong muscular and ligamentous(iliolumbar) attachment. An increased lumbar lordosis increases the shear stress at the L4-5 level. Both congenital and isthmic types are often associated with spina bifida of the L5 or S1 segments. There seems to be a definite sex and racial difference, with black women (1.1%) having the lowest prevalence and white men(6.4%) the highest. The increased prevalence is in Alaskan natives and young sportsmen, ranging from 11% to 35%. Repetitive flexion, combined flexion-extension and both forcible hyperextension and rotation of the lumbar spine predispose to a pars stress fracture. Most of isthmic type develops during the first year of school, and by age 7 the prevalence is 4%. A further 1.4% of cases occur during adolescence, most between 11 and 15 years of age. In patients under 25 years of age with low back pain and isthmic spondylolisthesis, this lesion is most probably the cause of the symptoms(18.9%). In patients older than 40 years, it is seldom the only cause of low back pain (5.2%). The radicular pain is found in 14% of patients with isthmic spondylolisthesis. Degenerative spondylolisthesis results from long standing intersegmental instability. 10% of women over 60 years had a 1st or 2nd degree. It occurs 6 times more often at the L4-5 level and 5 times more often in women, mostly in those older than 40 years. The patient may have back pain (5.6%) with or without leg pain and/or may have intermittent claudication (80%). In traumatic spondylolisthesis, acute fractures of the pars interarticularis are rare and are always due to fracture of the other part of the posterior elements caused by severe trauma. In pathological spondylolisthesis, the bony strength is insuffient to resist forward motion of the proximal vertebra on the one below. In postsurgical spondylolisthesis, the most common etiology is extensive decompression with sacrifice of the facet joints.
Adolescent ; Animals ; Back Pain ; Classification* ; Decompression ; Female ; Fractures, Stress ; Humans ; Intermittent Claudication ; Leg ; Lordosis ; Low Back Pain ; Natural History* ; Population Groups ; Prevalence ; Spinal Dysraphism ; Spine ; Spondylolisthesis* ; Zygapophyseal Joint

The patient of lumbar disc herniation complains low back pain and sciatica. The intervertebral disc was degenerated by aging, the lifetime incidence of low back pain ranges from 80 to 90%, as determined by epidemiologic studies, whereas the incidence of sciatica is only 2~40%. This article was made with review of the natural history, clinical manifestations and physical examinations of lumbar disc herniation. In conclusion, a careful history and physical examination remain the key to accurate diagnosis of the cause of low back pain and/or sciatica, and very helpful adjuncts to make a diagnosis of lumbar disc herniations.
Aging ; Diagnosis ; Humans ; Incidence ; Intervertebral Disc ; Low Back Pain ; Natural History* ; Physical Examination ; Sciatica