• The Journal of Korean Obstetrics and Gynecology
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• v.36 no.3
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• pp.154-172
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• 2023

Objectives: This study aimed to assess the clinical evidence supporting the use of acupuncture (AC) for premenstrual syndrome (PMS). Methods: We searched randomized controlled trials (RCTs) that used AC for PMS in 9 databases (PubMed, EMBASE, Cochrane Library, CINAHL, CNKI, CiNii, SCIENCE ON, KoreaMed, OASIS) from their inception to July 2022. Results: We identified 1,168 studies, of which 15 RCTs met the inclusion criteria. The risk of bias in the included studies was relatively unclear or high. Meta-analysis of 3 RCTs showed that the AC group had a significantly higher effective rate than the Medroxyprogesterone group (RR 1.48, 95% CI (1.23, 1.78), p<0.0001). Meta-analysis of 2 RCTs showed that there was no statistically significant difference between the AC group and the Sham AC group in the effective rate (RR 4.72, 95% CI (0.88, 25.36), p=0.07). In a review of individual studies, the AC group was more effective than the control group in terms of the effective rate, symptom scale, quality of life, adverse events, and recurrence rate. Conclusions: The AC group was more effective than general treatments groups such as sham AC, western medicine, and dietary supplements, and there were no serious adverse events. However, the evidence on the effectiveness and safety of acupuncture for PMS was inconclusive due to the small number of included studies and low quality. Therefore, systematic reviews based on more rigorously designed randomized clinical trials are needed in the future to properly evaluate the effect of AC on PMS.

• The Journal of Korean Obstetrics and Gynecology
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• v.36 no.3
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• pp.46-61
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• 2023

Objectives: The purpose of this systemic review is to overview and evaluate the efficacy of acupuncture in female patients with chronic constipation. Methods: We conducted a comprehensive search of the literature to identify randomized controlled trials that investigated the effects of acupuncture on female patients with chronic constipation. Key words searched included "Female Constipation", "Women Constipation", "Acupuncture" in database KISS, DBPIA, RISS, Cochrane Central, Scopus, Pubmed, CNKI. Results: Nine randomized controlled trials met our inclusion criteria and were included in this systematic review. Our analysis found that acupuncture was associated with significant improvements in spontaneous bowel movements, complete spontaneous bowel movements, stool consistency, and quality of life in female patients with chronic constipation. Acupuncture was generally well-tolerated, with few adverse effects reported. Conclusions: Our findings suggest that acupuncture treatment would be effective way to treat chronic constipation of female patients.

• The Journal of the Society of Stroke on Korean Medicine
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• v.18 no.1
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• pp.13-22
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• 2017

■ Objectives This case is to report the effect of Oryeong-san and acupuncture therapy on serum creatinine level of a cerebral infarction patient with diabetic nephropathy. ■ Methods A female Korean patient was treated with Oryeong-san, acupuncture for total 32 days. We observed renal function test, input/output balance, body weight, hand and foot circumferences, and other symptoms like edema, urination, and any adverse event. ■ Results After treatment, serum creatinine level was improved to 2.48mg/dL from 3.45mg/dL at admission, and foot circumference was decreased to 18.5~18.9cm from 22.0~22.5cm without any adverse event. However, we couldn't find any significant differences on input/output balance, body weight, or symptoms of urination. ■ Conclusion This case suggests that Oryeong-san and acupuncture therapy could be effective in improving serum creatinine clearance of cerebral infarction patient with diabetic nephropathy.

• The Journal of Korean Medicine
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• v.44 no.3
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• pp.140-149
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• 2023

Objectives: This case report aims to describe the effects of craniosacral therapy and acupuncture in a patient with chronic migraine. Methods: A 33-year-old man with chronic migraine was treated with 20 sessions of craniosacral therapy and acupuncture for 8 weeks. The number of migraine and headache days were monitored every month. The pain intensity of headache was measured on the visual analog scale (VAS). Korean Headache Impact Test-6 (HIT-6) and Migraine Specific Quality of Life (MSQoL) were also used. Results: The number of headache days per month reduced from 28 to 7 after 8 weeks of treatment and to 3 after 3 months of treatment. The pain intensity of headache based on VAS reduced from 7.5 to 3 after 8 weeks and further to < 1 after 3 months of treatment. Furthermore, the patient's HIT-6 and MSQoL scores improved during the treatment period, which was maintained or further improved at the 3 month follow-up. No side effects were observed during or after the treatment. Conclusion: This case indicates that craniosacral therapy and acupuncture could be effective treatments for chronic migraine. Further studies are required to validate the efficacy of craniosacral therapy for chronic migraine.

• Journal of Korean Medicine for Obesity Research
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• v.23 no.2
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• pp.125-135
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• 2023

Objectives: The purpose of this study was to review current research trends and to provide basic data for the guideline of the acupuncture treatment for abdominal obesity in the clinic. Methods: Publications related to acupuncture treatment for abdominal obesity were retrieved from 9 databases (PubMed, Embase, Scopus, Cochrane Library, Oriental Medicine Advanced Searching Integrated System, Korean studies Information Service System, Research Information Sharing Service, DataBase Periodical Information Academic, National Discovery for Science Library). Extracted studies were analyzed in terms of publication year, study type, treatment method, acupoint and evaluation method. Results: There were 19 studies about acupuncture treatment applied to abdominal obesity. Electroacupuncture and acupoint catgut embedding therapy was the most frequently studied treatment method. ST₂₅, CV₁₂, SP₁₅, CV₆, CV₄ was the most frequently used acupoint. Body weight, body mass index, waist circumference and waist-hip ratio was the most frequently used evaluation method. Conclusions: This review identified acupuncture application for abdominal obesity. However, well-designed and conducted clinical trials will be more needed to develop acupuncture treatment for abdominal obesity.

• The Journal of Internal Korean Medicine
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• v.44 no.6
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• pp.1318-1326
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• 2023

Introduction: Pressure ulcers, often found in patients with mobility issues, particularly elderly patients, are increasing in prevalence. Their treatment is complex, with recovery more challenging in advanced stages, and certain factors can delay healing. Case Presentation: An 87-year-old male developed a grade IV pressure ulcer on his left greater trochanter following lumbar fractures and subsequent percutaneous vertebroplasty in 2021. Despite potential surgical recommendations, his treatment consisted of daily wet dressings, acupuncture from July 2021 to February 2022, and Gami-sipjeondaebo-tang beginning August 2021. The ulcer, initially measuring 6 cm×6 cm and showing a red wound without necrosis, healed completely and showed no signs of recurrence as of August 2023. Conclusion: A grade IV pressure ulcer was effectively treated using wet dressing, acupuncture, and Gami-sipjeondaebo-tang, demonstrating no recurrence over a 1.5-year period.

• Journal of Oriental Neuropsychiatry
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• v.35 no.1
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• pp.15-26
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• 2024

Objectives: The objective of this study is to develop a specialized clinical research protocol for acupuncture treatment specifically designed for disaster survivors based on insights from an expert survey. Methods: An expert panel comprising specialists in neuropsychiatry, acupuncture, and clinical research methodology was assembled. Initial data to inform the clinical research protocol design was collected utilizing open-ended responses, multiple-choice questions, and a 5-point Likert scale to gauge agreement levels. Next, this data was disseminated to a panel of experts. A cohesive clinical research protocol was then formulated during a core panel meeting by integrating insights from a panel of 10 experts. Results: The protocol developed herein entails a non-randomized controlled study involving participants aged 19~64 years old who have been identified as high-risk or cautious according to the National Trauma Center screening test. The study design includes the establishment of an active control group, which allows for the assessment of an additional effect through comparison with conventional therapy. The selected acupuncture approach involves a combination of manual acupuncture and ear acupuncture. For clinical outcome assessment, the Clinician-Administered Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Scale for DSM-5 was proposed to gauge trauma symptoms. Representative scales for various domains such as depression, anxiety, anger, insomnia, pain, and quality of life were also provided for reference. Conclusions: The developed protocol is anticipated to streamline the swift design and initiation of clinical trials during disaster scenarios. It is also designed to be scalable, thereby enabling its application in both non-randomized control group studies and single-group before-and-after comparisons.

• The Journal of Internal Korean Medicine
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• v.44 no.6
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• pp.1197-1211
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• 2023

Objectives: This study presents evidence by analyzing the research trends in acupuncture treatment for cluster headache in the last 10 years. Methods: Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) about acupuncture for cluster headache were searched from the China National Knowledge Infrastructure, PubMed, Cochrane Library, Oriental Medicine Advanced Searching Integrated System, ScienceON, Korean Studies Information Service System, and Research Information Sharing Service. The search terms were the combinations of "cluster headache", "acupuncture", and "needle therapy", and the articles were restricted to those published between 2013 and 2023. Only RCTs were selected. The risk of bias (RoB) was assessed according to the revised Cochrane RoB2 criteria. Results: Six RCTs were selected and analyzed in this review. All selected studies were conducted in China. All RCTs comprised 628 participants. Manual acupuncture was used in all studies. Acupuncture targeting the sphenopalatine ganglion was performed in two papers published after 2020. ST8, Ex-HIN3, and GB14 were the most frequently used acupoints in acupuncture treatment. The most commonly used indicators for evaluation were headache attack frequency, clinical efficacy, and the visual analog scale. In each study, adding acupuncture treatment to conventional therapy had significant effects in relieving the symptoms of cluster headaches. Conclusion: The results suggest that acupuncture is an effective treatment for cluster headache. To ensure objective evidence for the effectiveness of acupuncture treatment in cluster headache, it is important to continue large-scale case reports and RCTs.

• Journal of Korean Medicine Rehabilitation
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• v.34 no.1
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• pp.83-95
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• 2024

Objectives This review was conducted to evaluate the therapeutic effects of manual acupuncture (MA) for shoulder impingement syndrome (SIS). Methods We searched 12 electronic databases (DBpia, Korean studies Information Service System [KISS], Oriental Medicine Advanced Searching Integrated System [OASIS], Research Information Sharing Service [RISS], China National Knowledge Infrastructure [CNKI], CINAHL, Clinical Key, Cochrane Library, Embase, JAMA, PubMed, Web of Science) to find randomized-controlled clinical trials (RCTs) investigating therapeutic effects of MA for treating SIS. Shoulder Pain and Disability Index scores and numeric pain rating scale or visual analogue scale were analyzed as the main evaluation criteria. Results Among 181 studies, 169 were screened and only 12 RCTs were eligible in our review. Finally, 11 RCTs could be statistically analyzed. MA was more effective than sham treatment and physical therapy in terms of reducing pain (p=0.003, p=0.0007 each). Electroacupuncture (EA) showed more significant effect than physical therapy (PT) for improving shoulder pain (p<0.00001) and shoulder functionality (p<0.00001). Conclusions These results suggest that MA and EA could be superior option for treating SIS than sham treatment or PT. However this review has its limitations due to the small sample size and lack of well-designed RCTs that were included in the study. Further well-designed RCTs are necessary to provide high-level evidence.

• The Journal of Korean Medicine
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• v.18 no.1
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• pp.40-57
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• 1997

The Background and Purpose It is done the study on the public health care of oriental medicine and improvement of its system recently, I think that these effect a good health care for a people through the public health care of oriental medicine. Since Woosuk university and Chonju-Wansan health center had taken upon the oriental medicine service in the health center in 1995, we have public favor from the local population. So in other to a study on the clinical statistics of oriental medicine service in the health center, I investigated general character, style of diseases, effect of treatments and the like for a paitents received oriental medicine treatments in there. Objective and Methods This study researched into clinical statistics for paitents received oriental medicine treatments in the Chonju-Wansan health center during one year period from January 4 1996 to December 26 1996. The number of object was 238 case of 234 persons. Results and Conclusions Analyzing these 234 persons, the proportion of males to females was 1 to 6.8. As for the distribution of age, the ages of 61 to 70 occupied 34.62 per cent in the ages of 51 to 90 occupied 88.89 per cent in the whole paitons. Therefor female was very highly more than male and paitents were for the most part, old ages(51years old and over). Musculoskeletal system and connective tissue disease of 238 case occupied 82.77 per cent. were the greatest proportion. At the duration of disease, 1 year to 5 years occupied 32.35 per cent, was the highest The grade Ⅲ was the most of the sign of paitents at first visit, it occupied 55.88 per cent. The good(++) and over effect of treatments occupied 62.18 per cent, the fair(+) and over effect of treatments occupied 78.99 per cent. As for the duration of treatment, the case of 2 times to 5 times visit occupied 34.03 per cent, was the highest. And the case of 2 times to 10 times visit was 4 times as good effect as the case of only one visit. By medication of treatment, O-Juk-San(五積散) occupied 32.21 per cent, was the greatest proportion, and Pal-Mj-Hoan(八味丸) occupied the second greatest proportion. Therefor the most of paitents had the chronic diseases and was diagnosed Sin-Yang-He(腎陽虛). The average 22.58 persons received acupuctural treatment a day, the average 0.58 persons received the moxibustion a day, the average 2.28 persons received venesection (bloodletting) a day. And others treatment performed physical therapy and the like. The case received treatment of the oriental and western medicine at the same time. marked 21 persons among 30 persons and had a good effect by 70 per cent. The average 26.95 persons received treatment of oriental medicine a day, the average 3.9 persons received the first medical examination a day.