• The Journal of Korean Medicine
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• v.36 no.4
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• pp.80-103
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• 2015

Background: This study investigated current research trends in bee venom acupuncture in Korea. Materials and methods: The literature in Korea was reviewed using the search engines Science and Technology Society Village, Korean Studies Information Service System, National Discovery for Science Leaders, and Oriental Medicine Advanced Searching Integrated System. The keywords searched were "bee venom," "apitoxin," "apitherapy," and "bee sting." We selected 412 studies, which included Korean literary studies, experimental studies, and clinical studies. Results: We classified them by publication year, research type, disease and topic, and quality assessment. Among bee venom-related studies, clinical studies (235 studies) outnumbered experimental studies (149 studies) and literary studies (28 studies). Nineteen experimental studies concentrated on the theme of "anticancer." In the type analysis of clinical studies, lumbar disorders comprised 45 of 235 studies, followed by the effect on body. Forty-two randomized controlled trials (RCTs) have been published from 2003 to date (2015). Twenty-two studies used appropriate randomization methods. Fourteen studies had a Jadad score of 4-5 points; 15 studies, 1-3 points; and 13 studies, 0 points. Conclusions: Bee venom treatment is based on Korean traditional medicine theory. Numerous research studies suggest its effectiveness. Effort and academic approach on bee venom are expected to receive a positive evaluation.

• Journal of Acupuncture Research
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• v.21 no.1
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• pp.149-158
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• 2004

Objective: Herniation of Nucleus Pulpous(HNP) of L-spine is the most important reason that causes low back pain. The aim of this study is to investigate the effectiveness of Bee venom acua-acupuncture therapy for HNP. Methods: We divided HNP patient into 2 groups: Control group with acupuncture therapy only, and Experimental group with both acupuncture and bee venom acua-acupuncture therapy. To estimate the efficacy of treatment that applied for two groups, we used visual analog scale(VAS) and Oswestry disability index(ODI). We compared the VAS and ODI score of two groups statistically. Results & Conclusions: 1. In VAS, experimental group shows statitically significant improvement rate, but control group does not show statistical significance. 2. In ODI, both the experimental and control group shows statistically significant improvement. 3. By comparing the experimental and control group, there was more significant improvement in experimental group than control group of VAS and ODI. As a result, bee venom acua-acupuncture therapy can be used with acupuncture therapy for highly effective treatment for HNP.

• Journal of Acupuncture Research
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• v.31 no.3
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• pp.91-102
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• 2014

Objectives : This study was done to determine the effect of Korean medical treatment to patient diagnosed as cauda equina syndrome(CES) suffering from both lower limb dysesthesia, saddle dysesthesia, buttock dysesthesia, dysuria, dyschezia and gait disturbance. Methods : A patient with CES was treated with acupuncture, sweet bee venom pharmacopuncture, herbal medicine from February 2 to April 9 at Department of Acupuncture & Moxibustion, Daejeon Korean Hospital of Daejeon University. Patient received acupuncture treatment($CV_1$, $CV_3$, $CV_4$, $CV_6$, $ST_{36}$, $BL_{31}$, $BL_{32}$, $BL_{33}$, $BL_{34}$) 12 times a week, bee-venom pharmacopuncture($BL_{23}$, $BL_{28}$) was conducted twice a week, herbal medicine(Samilsingihwan decoction) was applied to patient thrice a day for nine weeks. The following symptoms were observed saddle, and lower limb dysesthesia, dysuria, dyschezia and gait disturbance. Results : After treatment, dysesthesia, dysuria, dyschezia and gaiting developed good outcome. But anal reflex remained still. Conclusions : Acupuncture, bee-venom pharmacopuncture, herbal medicine combined treatment might be effective to patients with CES.

• Journal of Acupuncture Research
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• v.21 no.3
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• pp.107-119
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• 2004

Objective : The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of Bee Venom and melittin on the lipopolysaccharide(LPS) and sodium nitroprusside(SNP)-induced expressions of Cell viability, nitric oxide(NO), inducible nitric oxide synthase(iNOS), extra-signal response kinase(ERK), jun N-terminal Kinase(JNK) and p38 kinase(p38)- mitogen activated protein kinase(MAPK) Family- in RAW 264.7 cells, a murine macrophage cell line. Methods : The expressions of cell viability by MTT assay, NO by Nitrite assay and iNOS, ERK, JNK and p38 were determined by Western blotting. Results : 1. Compared with the control group, 0.5, 1, $5{\mu}g/m{\ell}$ bee venom and 5, $10{\mu}g/m{\ell}$ melittin increased cell viability of RAW 264.7 induced by LPS and SNP significantly respectively. 2. Compared with the control group, 0.5, 1, $5{\mu}g/m{\ell}$ bee venom and 5, $10{\mu}g/m{\ell}$ melittin inhibited expression of NO induced by LPS and SNP significantly respectively. 3. Compared with the control group, 1, $5{\mu}g/m{\ell}$ bee venom and 5, $10{\mu}g/m{\ell}$ melittin inhibited expression of iNOS induced by LPS significantly and 0.5, 1, $5{\mu}g/m{\ell}$ bee venom and 5, $10{\mu}g/m{\ell}$ melittin inhibited expression of iNOS induced by SNP significantly. 4. Compared with the control group, the expression of ERK induced by LPS and SNP decreased significantly in the treatment groups of $5{\mu}g/m{\ell}$ bee venom and 5, $10{\mu}g/m{\ell}$ melittin, which of p-ERK by LPS also did in 1, $5{\mu}g/m{\ell}$ bee venom and 5, $10{\mu}g/m{\ell}$ melittin, but which of p-ERK by SNP did not decrease. 5. Compared with the control group, the. expression of JNK induced by LPS and SNP decreased significantly in the treatment groups of 5, $10{\mu}g/m{\ell}$ melittin, which of p-JNK by LPS in 5, $10{\mu}g/m{\ell}$ melittin and by SNP in $1{\mu}g/m{\ell}$ bee venom and $10{\mu}g/m{\ell}$ melittin decreased significantly. 6. Compared with the control group, the expression of p38 induced by LPS did not have significant difference, which induced by SNP decreased significantly in the treatment groups of 1, $5{\mu}g/m{\ell}$ bee venom and 5, $10{\mu}g/m{\ell}$ melittin. p-p38 induced by LPS decreased significantly in the treatment group of $10{\mu}g/m{\ell}$ of melittin, which induced by SNP also decreased significantly in 0.5, 1, $5{\mu}g/m{\ell}$ bee venom and 5, $10{\mu}g/m{\ell}$ melittin.

• Journal of Pharmacopuncture
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• v.8 no.2
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• pp.29-37
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• 2005

Objective : This study is performed for the purpose of examining into the efficacy of the Bee Venom Acupuncture Treatment for Osteoarthritis of Knee Joint. Methods : We investigated 25 cases of patients with Osteoarthritis of Knee Joint from 1st June 2005 to 13th July 2005. The 25 patients were taken Bee Venom Acupuncture over three times irregularly. Treatment efficiency was monitored through VAS (Visual Analog Scale) and improvement degree of the grade of clinical symptoms. Conclusions : We brought to the conclusion that the Bee Venom Acupuncture has possibility to be efficient to cure the Osteoarthritis of Knee Joint patients. So we suggest the possibility to use this new remedy for the Osteoarthritis of Knee Joint.

• Journal of Acupuncture Research
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• v.18 no.3
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• pp.35-47
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• 2001

Objective : This study is designed to find out the effects of the Bee Venom-Acupuncture on knee joint with osteoarthritis. Methods : We are investigated that outpatients suffer from knee joint pain deciphered at the division of Acupuncture in Jaseng oriental medicine hospital from the 13, July 1999 to until 11, November 2000. We make an estimated of the score from both before or after its treatment about 70 cases of diagnostic patient with the osteoarthritis of knee joints by biochemical method and X-RAY analysis, we observed in the progress of symptoms. Results : These results found that sex distinction with a disease caused much more female than male at the ratio of 1 to 5.36 in the proportion of males to females, jobs is mainly ranked with a housewife and approximately 82.9% of cases before our hospital have ever treated at the other clinics or hospitals. On the hand, the distribution interval of a case history is mainly followed by disease in below 6 month, interval of the period-treatment is mainly gone within 3 month and frequency of treatment is examined into 11 to 15 times, more than 16 times and below 10 times, respectively. We are estimated with the score of functional barrier from both before or after its treatment aganist osteoarthritis' patients and produced in the usefulness from the totally point of fields except the aid-device after its treatment. In summary, these results demonstrated that Bee Venom, Acupuncture enhanced more than 82.9% to the improvement of treatment and P<0.05 considered to be statistically significant. Conclusion : These results suggest that Bee-venom Acupuncture may be play a role in the significant usefulness and have need of actively application for the clinical trials against osteoarthritis'patients.

• Journal of Acupuncture Research
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• v.27 no.2
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• pp.79-87
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• 2010

Objectives : The aim of this study is to investigate the effect of Hominis Placenta pharmacopuncture therapy and sweet bee venom therapy on peripheral facial paralysis. Methods : Clinical studies were done 36 patients who were treated peripheral facial paralysis to Dept. of Acupuncture and Moxibusition, of Oriental Medicine Dong-Eui University from June 15, 2009 to January 5, 2010. Subjects were randomly divided into 2 groups. : Hominis Placenta Pharmacopuncture treated group (group A, n=18), sweet bee venom treated group (group B, n=18). In group A, we treated patients with dry needle acupuncture and Hominis Placenta pharmacopuncture therapy. In group B, we treated patients with dry needle acupuncture and sweet bee venom therapy. All process of treatment were performed by double blinding method. To investigate the effectiveness of treatment applied for two groups, we used Yanagihara's unweighed grading system at before treatment, after 1week, 2weeks, 3weeks and 4weeks of treatment. Results : The Yanagihara's scores of group B were higher than those of group A, but not statistically significant. The improvement indexs of group A and group B were different, but not statistically significant. Conclusions : There were no significant differences statistically between Hominis Placenta pharmacopuncture therapy and sweet bee venom therapy on peripheral facial paralysis.

• Journal of Pharmacopuncture
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• v.14 no.2
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• pp.37-43
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• 2011

Objectives : This study was carried out to compare the Sweet Bee Venom (referred to as Sweet BV hereafter) acupuncture parallel treatment to treatment with acupuncture only for the patient diagnosed with lumbar spine sprain and find a better treatment. Methods : The subjects were patients diagnosed with lumbar spine sprain and hospitalized at Suncheon oriental medical hospital, which was randomly divided into sweet BV parallel treatment group and acupuncture-only group, and other treatment conditions were maintained the same. Then, VAS (Visual Analogue Scale) was used to compare the difference in the treatment period between the two groups from VAS 10 to VAS 0, from VAS 10 to VAS 5, and from VAS 5 to VAS 0. Result & Conclusion : Sweet BV parallel treatment group and acupuncture-only treatment group were compared regarding the respective treatment period, and as the result, the treatment period from VAS 10 to VAS 5 was significantly reduced in sweet BV parallel treatment group compared to the acupuncture-only treatment group, but the treatment period from VAS 5 to VAS 0 did not show a significant difference. Therefore, it can be said that sweet BV parallel treatment is effective in shortening the treatment period and controlling early pain compared to acupuncture-only treatment.

• Journal of Acupuncture Research
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• v.17 no.1
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• pp.169-174
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• 2000

The immune response of Bee Venom Therapy is commonly appear in clinics. It is whole body delayed allergy type and generally like fatigue. Therefore, in order to analysis the clinical form, we have observed immune response of 100 patients who visited Sangji University Oriental Medical Hospital and treated Bee Venom Therapy over 10 times from November 1998 to October 1999. The results were summarized as follows. 1. The distribution of Sex was 60 females, 40 males, and the average of patients age was $50.6{\pm}1.5years$. 2. The distribution of disease was degenerative arthritis, HIVD of L-spine, RA, etc. 3. The total treated time is 2765 and is observed 361 immume responses. 4. The average of keeping time in immume response is $11.8{\pm}0.6(hr)$, and the cases of over 24hrs is occupied 24.0%. 5. In the correlation between treated times and immume response is generally in inverse proportion. 6. The general aspect of immume response is chilling, heating, powerless, headache, dizziness, etc. 7. $M{\ddot{u}}ller$ Grade II-III was observed only 1%.

• Korean Journal of Oriental Medicine
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• v.16 no.2
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• pp.119-124
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• 2010

Cervical disc herniations can press on the spinal cord and cause a problem called cervical myelopathy. The most common symptom of cervical disc herniation is neck pain that spreads down to the upper limb in various locations. There can also be associated with weakness and movement disorders of upper limb. In Oriental medicine, cervical disc herniation is treated with herb-med, physical therapy, acupuncture, Chuna, etc, but the Bee Venom therapy is the most common and effective. In this case, we used the Bee Venom therapy at cervical hyeopcheokhyeol for about 2 months to a patient who was diagnosed with disc herniation at Cervical 5-6, 6-7 and appealed weakness, limited elevation and abduction of the left upper limb. As a result, left upper limb disability was improved. Using the Bee Venom therapy at cervical hyeopcheokhyeol that are effective on movement disorders and neurological diseases of upper limb is an effective treatment to upper limb disability diagnosed with cervical disc herniation, and suggests the direction of the treatment to upper limb weakness and movement disorders diagnosed with cervical disc herniation.