• The Journal of Korean Medicine Ophthalmology and Otolaryngology and Dermatology
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• v.34 no.1
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• pp.66-88
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• 2021

Objectives : This study aims to report 3 cases of systemic atopic dermatitis improved by Korean medicine hospitalization care. Methods : Unlike outpatients, inpatients were supervised their lifestyle including dietary habits by physicians every morning and daily treated with acupuncture, herbal medicine including Bangpungtongseongsan-gagam, and Hwangryunhaedok-tang wet dressing therapy during all week. For dressing preparation, Hwangryunhaedok-tang was used to skin lesion except face. Mixed decoction of Lonicerae Flos and Forsythiae Fructus was used to facial lesion. Hwangryunhaedok-tang pharmacopuncture was injected to 2 patients. Western oral medicine and injection such as antihistamine or corticosteroids were prescribed by physician depending on each patient's condition. Symptoms were assessed with SCORAD index, IGA, and taking photos. Results : All patients showed the decrease in SCORAD index, IGA, skin lesion amelioration, and patient-subjective improvement. As time passes, dependence on western treatment also decreased and patients were able to endure pruritus without antihistamine injection during hospitalization. Conclusions : This study suggests that Korean medicine hospitalization care including acupuncture, herbal medicine, external therapy is effective for improving atopic dermatitis through decrease SCORAD index, IGA and ameliorating skin lesion.

• The Journal of Korean Medicine Ophthalmology and Otolaryngology and Dermatology
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• v.35 no.1
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• pp.91-104
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• 2022

Objectives : The objective of this study is to report a case of a male atopic dermatitis patient accompanying seborrheic capitis and nummular eczema improved by Korean medicine therapy and lifestyle modification. Methods : A male patient was hospitalized for eczematous lesions in the head, face, and both hands which relapsed on March 2021. For 15 days, he took Korean medicine therapy including acupuncture, Bangpungtongseongsan-gagam, pharmacopuncture, and wet dressing with Hwangryunhaedok-tang. Simultaneously, lifestyle correction also conducted during administration. On the other hand, corticosteroid and antihistamine were prescribed from internal medicine of our hospital for the first 10 days because of severe skin lesions. As an outpatient, he was continuously treated by the same Korean medicine therapy except herbal decoction weekly for about 7 months after discharge. To assess symptoms, scoring atopic dermatitis(SCORAD) index, taking photos, and numerical rating scale(NRS) were used. Results : After 15 days of hospitalization, the SCORAD index decreased to 30.0, which was about a half of the initial SCORAD index(61.2). NRS score also dropped from 6 to 3. Despite stopping western medicine administration, skin lesions and subjective symptoms of the patient were steadily improved without aggravation. For 7 months of continued outpatient treatment, atopic dermatitis were steadily ameliorated despite temporary aggravation and improvement of symptoms, and seborrheic capitis was not relapsed. The final SCORAD index and NRS on November 9th, 2021 were 24.7 and 1, respectively. Conclusions : These results suggests that Korean medicine therapy contributes to improving SCORAD index, subjective symptoms, and skin lesions of the patient. Furthermore, lifestyle modification is also important as much as proper treatment for caring atopic dermatitis patients.

• The Journal of Internal Korean Medicine
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• v.44 no.3
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• pp.313-353
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• 2023

Objectives: Heart failure is a chronic disease with increasing prevalence rates despite advancements in medical technology. Korean medicine utilizes herbal prescriptions to treat heart failure, but little is known about the specific herbal medicines comprising the network of herbal prescriptions for heart failure. This study proposes a novel methodology that can efficiently develop prescriptions and facilitate experimental research on heart failure by utilizing existing databases. Methods: Herbal medicine prescriptions for heart failure were identified through a PubMed search and compiled into a Google Sheet database. NetMiner 4 was used for network analysis, and the individual networks were classified according to the herbal medicine classification system to identify trends. K-HERB NETWORK was utilized to derive related prescriptions. Results: Network analysis of heart failure prescriptions and herbal medicines using NetMiner 4 produced 16 individual networks. Uhwangcheongsim-won (牛黃淸心元), Gamiondam-tang (加味溫膽湯), Bangpungtongseong-san (防風通聖散), and Bunsimgi-eum (分心氣飮) were identified as prescriptions with high similarity in the entire network. A total of 16 individual networks utilized K-HERB NETWORK to present prescriptions that were most similar to existing prescriptions. The results provide 1) an indication of existing prescriptions with potential for use to treat heart failure and 2) a basis for developing new prescriptions for heart failure treatment. Conclusion: The proposed methodology presents an efficient approach to developing new heart failure prescriptions and facilitating experimental research. This study highlights the potential of network pharmacology methodology and its possible applications in other diseases. Further studies on network pharmacology methodology are recommended.