BACKGROUND: Postherpetic neuralgia (PHN) is the most common complication of herpes zoster infection and affects patients' quality of life. Acupuncture therapy is regarded as a competitive method of treatment for analgesia. OBJECTIVE: To summarize evidence from systematic reviews (SRs) and evaluate the effectiveness and safety of different acupuncture therapies for treating PHN. METHODS: Eight electronic databases were searched from their inception to August 5, 2022, including 4 international electronic databases (PubMed, EMBASE, the Cochrane Library, and Web of Science) and 4 Chinese databases (Chinese Biomedical Database, China National Knowledge Infrastructure, VIP Database and Wanfang Database). Methodological quality was assessed by A Measurement Tool to Assess Systematic Reviews 2 (AMSTAR 2). The Risk of Bias in Systematic Review (ROBIS) tool was used to assess the risk of bias in SRs. Evidence level was assessed by the Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development, and Evaluation (GRADE) approach. RESULTS: Totally, 7 SRs were included, including 128 studies and 9,792 patients. In AMSTAR 2, most of the SRs were of low or critically low levels since they had more than 1 critical deficiency. In ROBIS, 1 SR (14.29%) was rated as high risk, and the other 6 (85.71%) were rated as low risk. In the GRADE system, 9 outcomes (28.13%) were valued as high level, 5 (15.63%) as moderate level, 1 (3.13%) as low, and 17 (53.13%) as very low. In the effectiveness of acupuncture therapy, the group "moxibustion vs. original medical treatment" [mean difference (MD)=-1.44, 95% confidence interval (CI): -1.80 to -1.08, I²=99%, P<0.00001] was of the highest heterogeneity and the group "bloodletting vs. original medical treatment" (MD=-2.80, 95% CI: -3.14 to -2.46, I²=0, P<0.00001) was of the lowest heterogeneity. Six SRs have reported the safety of their studies and no serious events were shown in the treatment and control groups. CONCLUSIONS Acupuncture therapy seems to be effective in treating PHN. Despite the evidence that suggested the advantages of acupuncture therapy in relieving pain and promoting efficacy and safety, the methodological quality was quite low. Further studies should pay more attention to the quality of original studies and evidence for SRs to confirm these findings. (PROSPERO registration No. CRD42022344790).
Humans ; Neuralgia, Postherpetic/therapy* ; Acupuncture Therapy/methods* ; Systematic Reviews as Topic

OBJECTIVE: Psoriasis, a common chronic inflammatory skin condition with genetic underpinnings, is traditionally managed with cupping therapy. Although used historically, the precise mechanical effects and therapeutic mechanisms of cupping in psoriasis remain largely unexamined. This study aimed to evaluate cupping therapy's efficacy for psoriasis and investigate its role in modulating inflammatory responses and cellular metabolism. METHODS: Psoriasis was induced in mice using topical imiquimod (IMQ). The effects of cupping on psoriatic lesions were assessed using the Psoriasis Area and Severity Index score, histology, immunohistochemistry, and immunofluorescence staining. polymerase chain reaction sequencing (RNA-seq) and Western blotting were conducted to examine changes in mRNA expression and the AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) signaling pathway. RESULTS: Cupping therapy significantly reduced inflammation, epidermal thickness, and inflammatory cell infiltration in mice with IMQ-induced psoriasis. Immunohistochemistry and immunofluorescence showed lower expression of inflammatory markers and a shift in T-cell populations. RNA-seq and Western blotting indicated that cupping upregulated Piezo1 and activated the AMPK pathway, improving energy metabolism in psoriatic skin. CONCLUSION Cupping therapy reduces epidermal hyperproliferation and inflammation in psoriasis, rebalancing the local immune microenvironment. Mechanistically, cupping promotes calcium influx via Piezo1, activates AMPK signaling, and supports metabolic homeostasis, suggesting therapeutic potential for psoriasis. Please cite this article as: Xi RF, Liu X, Wang Y, Lu HZ, Yuan SJ, Guo DJ, Zhu JY, Li FL, Duan YJ. Mechanosensory activation of Piezo1 via cupping therapy: Harnessing neural networks to modulate AMPK pathway for metabolic restoration in a mouse model of psoriasis. J Integr Med. 2025; 23(6):721-732.
Animals ; Psoriasis/chemically induced* ; Mice ; AMP-Activated Protein Kinases/metabolism* ; Disease Models, Animal ; Cupping Therapy/methods* ; Signal Transduction ; Imiquimod ; Ion Channels/genetics* ; Male ; Mechanotransduction, Cellular

Objective To develop nurses'knowledge,attitude and practice questionnaire on medication management for patients with dysphagia,and test its reliability and validity.Methods Based on the evidence-based summary of the best evidence of medication management for patients with dysphagia,guided by the the-ory of knowledge,attitude and practice,the basic dimensions and item pool of the questionnaire were deter-mined through group discussion,Delphi expert consultation and pre-investigation.In order to revise the ques-tionnaire,437 nurses from 10 tertiary hospitals in Jiangsu Province were conveniently selected for investigation,and the reliability and validity of the questionnaire were tested according to the survey results.Results The nurses'knowl-edge,attitude and practice questionnaire on medication management for patients with dysphagia included 43 items in three dimensions.The three dimensions were analyzed by exploratory factors,and six common factors with characteristic roots>1 were extracted.Two factors were extracted from the knowledge dimension,and the cumulative variance contribution rate was 74.958%,One factor was extracted from the attitude dimen-sion,and the cumulative variance contribution rate was 77.655%.Three factors were extracted from the prac-tice dimension,and the cumulative variance contribution rate was 72.274%.The factor load of each item was 0.618-0.902,Cronbach's α coefficient of the total questionnaire was 0.949,and the test-retest reliability was 0.909.The overall content validity coefficient of the questionnaire was 0.922,and the content validity coeffi-cient for each item was 0.800-1.000.Conclusion The nurses'knowledge,attitude and practice questionnaire on medication management for patients with dysphagia developed in this study has good reliability and validi-ty,and could be used as an effective tool to evaluate the status quo of nurses'medication management for pa-tients with dysphagia.

The clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR)/CRISPR-associated protein 9 (Cas9) is widely used for targeted genomic and epigenomic modifications, transcriptional regulation and real-time cell imaging, and has already demonstrated great potential for applications in agriculture, industry and medicine. The promise of the technology depends upon the five intrinsic properties of CRISPR/Cas: targeting, target unwinding, target cutting, target residence, and collateral cleavage. Here, mainly using Streptococcus pyogenes CRISPR/Cas9 as example, we will focus on the target residence of CRISPR/Cas in applications of the CRISPR/Cas technology, summarize the recent progress, and discuss the effect of CRISPR/Cas target binding and residence on DNA double strand break repair pathway choices and the opportunities that CRISPR/Cas target residence presents to optimize the CRISPR/Cas technology.

Objective To establish a stable and reliable method for the determination of ethylene oxide residue,and to analyze ethylene oxide residue in multi components made of different materials involved in some medical devices,so as to provide references for sample selection and ethylene oxide residue detection of multi-component medical device kits.Methods A method for the determination of ethylene oxide residue of multi-component medical devices was developed using headspace-gas chromatography and DB-WAX column under the conditions of headspace extraction with equilibration at 80℃ for 20 min,and the weighing mass,linearity,limit of detection,limit of quantification,precision and recovery of the method were determined.Trials of the method were carried out on the items undergoing ethylene oxide sterilization,including disposable perineal care kit,disposable gynecological examination kit,disposable suture dressing kit,disposable debridement kit and the components contacting human body in the disposable dialysis kit,and the abilities of different materials of the components were analyzed in absorbing,retaining and releasing ethylene oxide.Results The method showed high linearity(r=0.999 8)in the range of ethylene oxide mass concentration from 0.4 to 16.0 μg/mL with a weighing mass of 1.00 g,which had the limit of detection being 0.11 μg/mL,the limit of quantification being 0.37 μg/mL and the relative standard deviations(RSDs)for the precision from 0.35％to 1.52％.The average recoveries of different spiked amounts of ethylene oxide in the three blank matrices ranged from 92.68％to 101.42％with the relative standard deviations(RSDs)from 2.46％to 7.59％,which all satisfied the detection requirements.The components made of rubber and acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene copolymer(ABS)in multi-component medical device kits had the highest ethylene oxide residues,followed by the components made of wood,degreased cotton,polypropylene and polystyrene.Conclusion The method proposed gains advantages in easy operation and high specificity,quantification and reproducibility,which can be used for the determination of ethylene oxide residue in the multi-component medical device kit undergoing ethylene oxide sterilization.References are provided for sample selection of multi-component medical devices.[Chinese Medical Equipment Journal,2024,45(1):56-61]

R-spondin2 (Rspo2) is a member of protein family RSPOs, which can be coupled to receptor 4/5 (leucine-rich repeat-containing g protein-coupled receptor 4/5, LGR4/5), cell surface transmembrane E3 ubiquitin ligase ZNRF3/RNF43 (zinc and ring finger 3/ring finger protein 43), heparan sulfate proteoglycan (heparan sulfate proteoglycans, HSPGs) and the IQ motif (IQ gap 1) containing GTP enzyme activating protein 1, regulating the Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway, which is the most widely studied signaling pathway and directly related to basic bone biology. Any problem in this pathway may have an impact on bone regulation. In recent years, it has been found that Rspo2 can act on osteoblast, osteoclast and chondrocytes through Wnt/β-catenin, and take part in occureace and development of some bone diseases such as ossification of the posterior longitudinal ligament (OPLL), osteoarthritis (OA) and rheumatoid arthritis (RA), so the study of Rspo2 may become a new therapeutic direction for bone-related diseases. Based on the latest research progress, this paper reviews the structure and main functions of Rspo2, the mechanism of Rspo2 regulating Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway and its influence on skeletal system, in order to provide new ideas and ways for the prevention and treatment of bone-related diseases.

Objective To investigate the dosimetric effects of different calculation grid size(CGS)in helical tomotherapy(HT)planning system on stereotactic body radiation therapy(SBRT)for non-small cell lung cancer(NSCLC).Methods Nine NSCLC patients receiving radiation therapy for the first time at some hospital from March 2019 to December 2022 were selected as the subjects.SBRT planning was carried out through the HT system with three different CGS plans(Fine,Normal,and Coarse)and the same pitch,modulation factor(MF)and optimization conditions,and the target area indexes of the three CGS plans were compared including conformity index(CI),homogeneity index(HI),dosimetric parameters of the organ at risk(OAR),point dose verification pass rate,treatment time,number of monitor units and Sinograms.SPSS 22.0 was used for statistical analysis.Results For target area HI,there weres significant differences between CGS Fine plan and Coarse plan and between CGS Normal plan and Coarse plan(P＜0.05),while no statistical differences were found between CGS Fine plan and Normal plan(P＞0.05).For target area CI,there were significant differences between CGS Fine plan and Coarse plan(P＜0.05),while no statistical differences were found between CGS Fine plan and Normal plan and between CGS Normal plan and Coarse plan(P＞0.05).For OAR dosimetric parameters,CGS Fine plan and Coarse plan had significant differences in heart Dmax and Dmean,esophageal Dmax and Dmean,V5,V20,V30 and Dmean of the whole lung and affected lung,V5 and Dmax of the affected lung and heart V10 and V30(P＜0.05),CGS Normal plan and Coarse plan had obvious differences in esophageal Dmax(P＜0.05),and the remained dosimetric parameters were not statistically significant(P＞0.05).Fine,Normal and Coarse plans had the point dose verifica-tion pass rates being 0.96％,1.50％and 1.77％,respectively.In terms of treatment time and number of monitor units,there were significant differences between Fine plan and Coarse plan(P＜0.05)while no statistical differences were found between Fine and Normal plans and between Normal and Coarse plans(P＞0.05).Sinograms analyses showed Fine plan had evenly distributed segment color gradient,Coarse plan had areas of very dark and very light color gradients and Normal plan was somewhere in between.Conclusion Low CGS has to be used as much as possible to obtain accurate dose distribution during SBRT planning for NSCLC patients,which contributes to the execution of the radiation therapy plan and the prevention of ad-verse effects.[Chinese Medical Equipment Journal,2024,45(2):52-57]

Objective To investigate the radiotherapy dose impacts of different jaw widths on stereotactic body radiotherapy(SBRT)for hepatocellular carcinoma(HCC)with the hilical tomotherapy(HT)planning system.Methods Totally 16 HCC patients who received radiotherapy at some hospital from March 2021 to August 2023 were selected,and the planning was carried out with the same pitch,modulation factors and optimization conditions and the jaw widths being 1.0,2.5 and 5.0 cm.The dosimetric differences due to the jaw widths in planned targets and organs at risk(OAR)were compared,and the planned treatment time,monitor unit,gantry rotations and gantry period were evaluated.SPSS 22.0 was used for statistical analysis.Results Better dosimetric parameters and lower doses to OARs could be got with lower jaw widths.The widened jaw widths resulted in reduced planned treatment time,decreased monitor units and gantry rotations,shortened gantry period while enhanced treatment efficiency.Conclusion A 2.5 cm jaw width for HT planning contributes to improving treatment efficiency during HCC SBRT under the premise of ensured target dose distribution and satisfactory dose to OAR for clinical require-ments.[Chinese Medical Equipment Journal,2024,45(7):51-55]

Objective To propose an effective method for the determination of 2-chloroethanol(ethylene chlorohydrin,ECH)and ethylene glycol(EG)residues in disposable infusion sets sterilized by ethylene oxide(EO).Methods Extraction with the ratio of the mass of the disposable infusion set to the volume of the medium being 0.4 g/mL was carried out with the 8890B gas chromatograph with liquid injection,DB-WAX column and ethanol extraction medium,and quantitative determination of ECH and EG in disposable infusion sets were implemented after extraction at 37℃for 10 h.Results The method proposely was highly specific,and showed high linearity in the range of 1.25-100.00 μg/mL for both ECH and EG.The limits of detection were 0.31 and 0.11 μg/mL for ECH and EG,respectively,and the relative standard deviations(RSD)of the precision of ECH was in the range of 0.24％-2.03％and those of EG was in the range of 0.16％-0.87％.The average recoveries were 95.02％-100.58％for ECH and 99.15％-99.98％for EG.Conclusion The method proposed for the determination of ECH and EG residues gains advantages in easy operation,specificity,detection accuracy and reproducibility,and meets the requirements for the determination of ECH and EG residues in EO-sterilized disposable infusion sets.[Chinese Medical Equipment Journal,2024,45(10):31-36]

In the outbreak of COVID-19,triage procedures based on epidemiology were implemented in a local hospital in Changsha to control the transmission of SARS-CoV-2 and avoid healthcare-associated infection.This re-trospective study analyzed the data collected during the triage period and found that COVID-19 patients were en-riched 7 folds into the Section A designated for patients with obvious epidemiological history.On the other side,nearly triple amounts of visits were received at the Section B for patients without obvious epidemiological history.8 COVID-19 cases were spotted out of 247 suspected patients.More than 50％of the suspected patients were submi-tted to multiple rounds of nucleic acid analysis for SARS-CoV-2 infection.Of the 239 patients who were diagnosed as negative of the virus infection,188 were successfully revisited and none was reported as COVID-19 case.Of the 8 COVID-19 patients,3 were confirmed only after multiple rounds of nucleic acid analysis.Besides comorbidities,delayed sharing of epidemiological history added complexity to the diagnosis in practice.The triaging experience and strategy will be helpful for the control of infectious diseases in the future.