• Journal of Acupuncture Research
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• v.33 no.1
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• pp.79-93
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• 2016

Objectives : The purpose of this study is to explore research trends in gold implantation therapy performed on the animal and human body, through a review of clinical studies focused on gold thread, gold needle and gold bead. Methods : Medical databases, including Pubmed, CENTRAL, MEDLINE, EMBASE, RISS4u, KISTI, OASIS and KTKP, were searched for relevant articles published from their launch to December 31, 2015 using the key word 'gold' with '$thread^*$', '$needle^*$', '$acupuncture^*$', '$wire^*$', '$bead^*$', '$embed^*$', '$implant^*$', or '$insert^*$'. The results were classified into in vivo studies, clinical trials and clinical reports. Analysis of the results was conducted in several research areas, from the identity of studies such as nationality and published year, to the gold preparations-features and implanted locations and to the outcomes that reflect the clinically favorable or adverse effect of gold implantation therapy. Results : A total of 30 studies including 11 in vivo studies, 4 clinical trials and 15 case reports, were found in the search. We observed certain research trends according to the research time, nationality and target indication of the studies. The studies primarily revealed a chronic local inflammatory response which could be a useful mechanism for pain-relief in musculoskeletal diseases and facial rejuvenation. Researches concerning long-term reactions or adverse effects were rare. Conclusion : The results show that the efforts to discover the level of clinical efficacy of gold implantation therapy were steady and worldwide. However, further researches on the longterm effect, and more importantly, the safety of gold implantation therapy are required.

• The Journal of Korean Society for Radiation Therapy
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• v.20 no.1
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• pp.25-29
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• 2008

Purpose: To monitor the changes of location of prostate gland using DIPS and to examine the adjustment and proton beam therapy depending on the movement of prostate gland in proton beam therapy for prostate gland in which a fiducial gold marker was inserted. Materials and Methods: This study was conducted in ten patients with prostate cancer who received proton beam therapy since April of 2008. To monitor the change of prostate location, three fiducial gold markers were inserted prior to the treatment. To minimize the movement of prostate gland, patients were recommended to urinate prior to the treatment, to intake a certain amount of water and to concomitantly undergo rectal balloon. In these patients, the set-up position was identical to that for a CT-simulation. The PA (posterior-anterior) and lateral images were obtained using both DIPS (digital image positioning system) and a plain radiography, and they were compared between the two imaging modalities. Thus, the changes of the location of fiducial gold marker were assessed based on three coordinates (x, y, z) and then adjusted. This was followed by proton beam therapy. Results: Images which were taken using a plain radiography were compared with those which were taken using DIPS. In ten patients, according to a reference bony marker, the mean changes of the location of fiducial gold marker based on an iso-center were X-axis: $\pm$0.116 cm, Y-axis: $\pm$0.19 cm and Z-axis: $\pm$0.176 cm. These ten patients showed a difference in the changes of location of prostate gland and it ranged between RT: 0.04 cm and RT: 0.24 cm on the X-axis; between Inf: 0.03 cm and Sup: 0.42 cm on the Y-axis; and Post: 0.05 cm and Ant: 0.35 cm on the Z-axis. Conclusion: To minimize the movement of prostate gland, as the pre-treatment prior to the treatment. In all the patients, however, three fiducial gold markers showed a daily variation which were inserted in the prostate gland. Based on the above data, Thus, the requirement of gold marker matching system depending on the daily variation in the proton beam therapy for which more accurate establishment of target was confirmed. It is assumed that an accurate effect of proton beam therapy would be enhanced by adjusting the target-center depending on the location change of prostate gland using DIPS which was used in the current study.

• Applied Science and Convergence Technology
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• v.23 no.1
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• pp.48-53
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• 2014

We have formulated hexagonal-shaped gold nanoplates in a single-step for photothermal therapy that gold ions to gold particles using pyrenyl dextran as reducible stabilizer and template. They exhibit anisotropic structure with broad surface plasmon resonance (SPR) band into near-infrared (NIR) spectrum enabling photothermal therapy. These gold nanoplates are also confirmed biocompatibility and high uptake efficiency due to binding with dextran molecules on the surface of gold nanoplates and cells. From in vitro phtothermal ablation study under NIR laser, gold nanoplates have the potential to use as photothermal agents.

• Journal of Acupuncture Research
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• v.39 no.4
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• pp.317-322
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• 2022

Gold thread therapy (GTT) continuously stimulates acupoints and is used to treat chronic conditions/diseases such as chronic lumbar pain. During the procedure gold thread is embedded into the skin and although gold thread is medically pure, GTT is an irreversible treatment where there is limited evidence on its safety. Here, we report a case of a 79-year-old woman being treated for low back pain who developed side effects following moving cupping therapy at a site of GTT (performed in the 1970s). Adverse reactions causing radiating pain persisted more than at least 9 days following moving cupping therapy. The symptoms of pain were evaluated using the numerical rating scale, and changes in tenderness and the state of bruising was recorded. Low back pain improved but the radiating low leg pain did not improve. This case highlights the need for caution when performing moving cupping therapy where GTT has been previously performed.

• Medical Lasers
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• v.8 no.2
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• pp.97-100
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• 2019

Facial pores are a visible topographic feature of skin surfaces and are generally the enlarged openings of pilosebaceous follicles. Enlarged facial pores can be a significant cosmetic problem, particularly for women. Recently, gold nanoshell-mediated photothermal therapy (PTT) has been reported to be effective in treating recurrent acne. The treatment of enlarged facial pores with gold nanoshell-mediated PTT produced excellent results with no side effects. The two cases reported here demonstrate the possibility of gold nanoshell-mediated PTT as a safe and effective treatment for enlarged facial pores.

• Journal of Digital Convergence
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• v.15 no.8
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• pp.465-476
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• 2017

This study attempted to investigate the effects of gold therapy on myofascial pain syndrome(MPS) in the neck, back and shoulder in comparison to stone therapy and verify its availability as an efficient nursing mediator in clinical trials. For this, therapy was given to a total of 20 women in two groups (gold therapy group, stone therapy group: 10 persons each) living in the capital region three times a week (40 min. at a time) for two weeks. In both groups, a statistically significant decrease was found in the following after the treatment: neck circumference, shoulder width, width of the inferior angle of scapula, shoulder thickness and waist circumference (p<0.001). In terms of differences, the gold therapy group was greater than the stone therapy group. In both groups, a statistically significant increase was observed after treatment in the following: cervical lateral bending (right), cervical lateral bending (left), cervical flexion and cervical extension angle (p<0.001). In terms of differences, the gold therapy group was greater than the stone therapy group. In conclusion, this study seems to show that gold therapy is a nursing intervention option having effective fascial relaxation and pain relief for the neck, back and shoulder. Therefore, it would be valuable as safe, non-invasive therapy.

• Medical Lasers
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• v.10 no.2
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• pp.61-67
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• 2021

Advances in nanobiotechnology have presented numerous possibilities of more effective diagnostic and therapeutic options. In particular, gold nanoparticles have demonstrated the potential for application in molecular imaging and treatment of cancers, including drug delivery system of certain target molecules, enhancement of radiation therapy, and photothermal treatment. This review discusses the properties, mechanism of action, and clinical application of gold nanoparticles. Although the safety of nanoparticles is yet to be ascertained, there is no doubt that in the future, nanotechnology will play an important role in the development and enhancement of a wide range of diagnostic and treatment modalities.

• Medical Lasers
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• v.10 no.4
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• pp.242-245
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• 2021

Acne vulgaris is a common inflammatory skin disease of the pilose-baceous unit. It appears as lesions consisting of comedones, papules, pustules, and nodules of varying shapes and severity. In general, the first-line treatment for acne vulgaris includes topical and oral medication. Recently, various physical modalities have also been investigated. The use of laser therapy is steadily increasing because of its fewer side effects, short procedure time, and rapid results. In particular, laser therapy assisted with carbon suspension application is effective for acne vulgaris but may sometimes result in discomfort due to odor and dust formation during the procedure. Herein, we report that acne vulgaris and enlarged facial pores can be safely and effectively treated with laser therapy assisted with diamond particle suspension and gold microparticle application, which can address the discomfort caused by the carbon suspension application.

• Journal of Industrial and Engineering Chemistry
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• v.67
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• pp.429-436
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• 2018

Targeted intracellular delivery of therapeutic agents is one of the great challenges for cancer treatment. Aptamers that bind to a variety of biological targets have emerged as new targeting moieties with high specificity for targeted cancer therapy. In this study, near-infrared (NIR) light-absorbing hollow gold nanocages (AuNCs) were synthesized and conjugated with AS1411 aptamer to achieve cancer-targeted photothermal therapy. AuNC functionalized with PEG and AS1411 (AS1411-PEG-AuNC) exhibited selective cellular uptake in breast cancer cells due to selective binding of AS1411 to nucleolin, a protein that is over-expressed in cancer cells over normal cells. As a result, AS1411-PEG-AuNC showed cancer-targeted photothermal activity. This study demonstrates that aptamer-conjugated AuNCs are effective tumor-targeting photothermal agents.

• Progress in Medical Physics
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• v.21 no.3
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• pp.291-297
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• 2010

This study examined the dosimetric influence of implanted gold markers in proton therapy and the effects of their positions in the spread-out Bragg peak (SOBP) proton beam. The implanted cylindrical gold markers were 3 mm long and 1.2 mm in diameter. The dosimetric influence of the gold markers was determined with markers at various locations in a proton-beam field. Spatial dose distributions were measured using a three-dimensional moving water phantom and a stereotactic diode detector with an effective diameter of 0.5 mm. Also, a film dosimetry was performed using Gafchromic External Beam Treatment (EBT) film. The GEANT4 simulation toolkit was used for Monte-Carlo simulations to confirm the measurements and to construct the dose-volume histogram with implanting markers. Motion data were obtained from the portal images of 10 patients to investigate the effect of organ motions on the dosimetric influence of markers in the presence of a rectal balloon. The underdosed volume due to a single gold marker, in which the dose was less than 95% of a prescribed amount, was 0.15 cc. The underdosed volume due to the presence of a gold marker is much smaller than the target volume. However, the underdosed volume is inside the gross tumor volume and is not smeared out due to translational prostate motions. The positions of gold markers and the conditions of the proton-beam field give different impacts on the dose distribution of a target with implanted gold markers, and should be considered in all clinical proton-based therapies.