• The Journal of Korean Obstetrics and Gynecology
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• v.32 no.3
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• pp.102-115
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• 2019

Objectives: The purpose of this study is to confirm the effectiveness and safety of acupuncture for treating breast cancer-related lymphedema (BCRL), thus providing a clinical basis for acupuncture treatment and helping to develop clinical practice guideline through consideration of used meridians and acupoints. Methods: Clinical studies applying acupuncture on breast cancer-related lymphedema were searched through 7 databases such as The Cochrane Library Central, Embase, Pubmed and CAJ. Interventions and results of the selected clinical studies were analyzed. Results: 8 Clinical studies were finally included according to inclusion and exclusion criteria. There were 6 randomized controlled studies and 2 single-arm pilot studies. All of those studies were searched in The Cochrane Library Central, Embase, Pubmed and CAJ and written in English and Chinese. Treatment group applied acupuncture as a Korean medicine intervention. Interventions of control group were made with non-treatment, upper limb exercise, and oral administration of capillary stabilizer or diuretics. Outcome measurements varied from paper to paper but every study measured reduction in arm circumference. Among 8 studies, 6 studies reported statistically significant reduction in arm circumference in treatment group and there were no serious adverse effects. Conclusions: This study suggested that acupuncture has few side effects as well as statistically significant effects on many aspects in treating breast cancer-related lymphedema. However the results should be taken cautiously as more clinical studies are needed.

• The Journal of Korean Medicine
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• v.41 no.1
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• pp.107-116
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• 2020

Objectives: To overcome the limitations of randomized controlled trials, many other trials design is tested. The n-of-1 trial is a promising research method in the field of Korean medicine because of this methodology can examine the optimal treatment for each patient strictly. Therefore, we reviewed the status of N-of-1 studies on herbal medicine. Methods: A systematic literature review was conducted based on the pubmed database. The search term were 'N-of-1 Trial', 'Chinese Medicine', 'Herbal Medicine', 'Kampo'. There was no restriction in year. Results: Four clinical trials have been identified to demonstrate the effectiveness of herbal medicines for Kidney-yin-deficiency syndrome, bronchiectasis and gastric cancer. These studies suggest that the N-of-1 design is a study that encourages patient involvement, demonstrates the effectiveness of herbal medicines and helps reduce unnecessary medication. Conclusion: The N-of-1 clinical trial may be a rigorous methodology suitable for the clinical setting and may help the development of evidence-based Korean medicine. Attention is also needed in this research method in Korea.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.15 no.8
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• pp.3477-3482
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• 2014

Objective: Patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) have an increased risk of extra-intestinal cancer, whereas its impact on cholangiocarcinoma (CC) remains unknown. The aim of this study was to obtain a reliable estimate of the risk of CC in IBD patients through a meta-analysis of clinical observational studies. Methods: Relevant studies were retrieved by searching PUBMED, EMBASE and Web of Science Databases up to Dec 2013. Four population-based case-control and two cohort studies with IBD were identified. Summary relative risk (RR) and its corresponding 95% confidence interval (CI) were calculated using a random-effects model. Potential sources of heterogeneity were detected using subgroup analyses. Results: The pooled risk estimate indicated IBD patients were at increased risk of CC (RR = 2.63, 95%CI = 1.47-4.72). Moreover, the increased risk of CC was also associated with Crohn's disease (RR = 2.69, 95%CI = 1.59-4.55) and ulcerative colitis (RR = 3.40, 95%CI = 2.50-4.62). In addition, site-specific analyses revealed that IBD patients had an increased risk of intrahepatic CC (ICC) (RR = 2.61, 95%CI = 1.72-3.95) and extrahepatic CC (ECC) (RR = 1.47, 95%CI = 1.10-1.97). Conclusions: This study suggests the risk of CC is significantly increased among IBD patients, especially in ICC cases. Further studies are warranted to enable definite conclusions to be drawn.

• Journal of Korean Medical classics
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• v.25 no.3
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• pp.13-22
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• 2012

Objective : This study was conducted to compare Sasang Constitutional Medicine (SCM) and Four Humor Theory (FHT). Method : 1. The theoretical comparison was focused on the central pillars of both theories, i.e., the theories of Hippocrates and his successor Galenos as well as Lee Je-ma. 2. Research papers on SCM and FHT were collected as follows. First, relevant papers were searched for using several electronic databases: Pubmed (http://www.pubmed.org.), NDSL (http://www.ndsl.kr/index.do), KISS (http://kiss.ksstudy.com), and RISS (http://www.riss4u.net.). Keywords were 'Sasang', 'constitution', 'constitutional medicine', 'humor theory', 'Hippokrates', 'Galenos', and "Dongeuisusebowon".In addition, relevant papers were searched for using the websites of The Korean Society for the History of Medicine(http://medhist.kams.or.kr), The Korean society of Oriental medical classics (http://www.wonjeon.or.kr), The Society of Sasang Constitutional Medicine (http://www.esasang.or.kr/new_home/main.htm),and The Korean Association of Oriental Medical Physiology (http://www.ksomp.or.kr). As a result, a total of 32 papers were included in the final selection. Result & Conclusion : In this study, a comparison was made between FHT and SCM in terms of physiology, pathology and therapy. We showedthat the theories share similarities as well as differences. However, in a practical sense, the two should be characterized based on their differences rather than their similarities. In conclusion, the two have something in common, but overall, they are remarkably different from each other.

• The Journal of Korean Obstetrics and Gynecology
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• v.30 no.2
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• pp.71-80
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• 2017

Objectives: The purpose of this systematic review was to overview and evaluate the effectiveness of acupoint catgut embedding for climacteric hot flush. Methods: We searched articles from CNKI, Pubmed CENTRAL, Koreantk, Oasis online databases. After searching the articles, we performed quality assessment using Cochrane risk of bias (RoB) tools. Results: Among the 20 articles were searched, one radomized controlled clinical trial (RCT) was selected. 1 Study showed that Acupoint catgut embedding treatment has significant effect on climacteric hot flush in terms of the effectiveness rate. Conclusions: This study found encouraging but limited evidence of aupoint catgut embedding theragpy for climacteric hot flush.

• The Journal of Korean Obstetrics and Gynecology
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• v.32 no.1
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• pp.15-25
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• 2019

Objectives: The aim of this study is to review clinical studies of Hominis Placenta Pharmacopuncutre on Obstetrics & Gynecology diseases. Methods: Key words "Jahageo Yakchim", "Hominis Placenta Pharmacopuncture", "Human Placenta Pharmacopuncture", "Hominis Placenta Pharmacoacupuncutre" were searched on 6 database systems (DBpia, KISS, KTKP, NDSL, Pubmed, CENTRAL) on August 31th 2018. Results: 1 case reports and 4 controlled studies were collected in accordance with the selection and exclusion criteria. The study design, study results and method of intervention were analyzed. Conclusions: This review shows the necessity of large-scale well designed clinical studies of Hominis Placenta Pharmacopuncture on Obstetrics & Gynecology diseases to evaluate the efficacy and safety.

• The Journal of Korean Obstetrics and Gynecology
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• v.30 no.2
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• pp.120-132
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• 2017

Objectives: The purpose of this study was to examine clinical studies on the treatment of dysmenorrhea treatments and analyze the results to provide sufficient evidence to provide adequate evidence of the efficacy of the ear-acupuncture treatment on dysmenorrhea patients. Methods: The search for foreign papers used 'Pubmed', a research engine in the America National Library of Medicine. Used searching terms were 'dysmenorrhea' and 'menstrual pain' in all cases. And among these studies, we searched by using key word 'auricular acupuncture' or 'ear acupuncture' or 'auricular acupressure' or 'ear acupressure'. Results: Overall 53 studies, 7 studies were finally selected to this study. There was 1 controlled study, 3 clinical trials, and 3 randomized-control studies. About acupoints in study, the endocrine was used in all 7 papers. Internal genitals, shenmen, sympathesis, kidney, liver were used in 4 papers, central rim, hypo-cortex, uterus were used in 2 papers, central of cymba auriculae was used in 2 paper. In 4 papers, the effect of ear acupuncture treatment was effective in relieving menstrual pain. Moreover, we can see that ear acupuncture therapy was effective in reducing menstrual pain than in oriental herb medicine. Conclusions: As a result of the 7 papers, we found that patients with menstrual pain decreased after ear acupuncture therapy. However, there was little research and it was limited to achieving the results of the analysis. A vigorous clinical study should be conducted to demonstrate the efficacy of ear acupuncture therapy and standardize treatment methods.

• Journal of Korean Medicine Rehabilitation
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• v.28 no.3
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• pp.55-66
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• 2018

Objectives To evaluate the evidence supporting the effectiveness of bee venom acupuncture for ankle sprain. Methods We conducted search across 11 electronic databases (Pubmed, EMBASE, Cochrane CENTRAL [CENTRAL], KoreaMed, Kmbase, Koreanstudies Information Service System [KISS], National Digital Science Library [NDSL], Korea Institute of Science and Technology Information [KISTI], China National Knowledge Infrastructure [CNKI], Wanfang and Chinese Scientific Journals Database [VIP] database) to find clinical trials that used bee venom acupuncture as treatment for ankle sprain. The methodological quality of randomized controlled clinical trials (RCTs) were assessed using the Cochrane Risk of Bias (RoB) tool, while non-randomized controlled clinical trials (NRCTs) were assessed using the Cochrane Risk of Bias Assessment tool for Non-randomized Study (RoBANS) tool. Results Four RCTs and one nRCT met our inclusion criteria. Almost studies showed that bee venom acupuncture has positive effect on ankle sprain. 4 studies of same intervention and control included in the meta-analysis. When comparing bee venom acupuncture and acupuncture with acupuncture, the effect size of standardized mean difference (SMD) was -0.19 (95% confidence interval [CI]: -1.95~1.56, Z=0.55, p=0.83). And when comparing bee venom acupuncture with acupuncture, the effect size of SMD was -0.17 (95% CI: -0.65~0.31, Z=0.71, p=0.48). Conclusions Although our systematic review found encouraging but limited evidence of bee venom acupuncture for ankle sprain, most of the studies included in the analysis were evaluated as methodologically high risk of bias. From now on further well-designed RCTs should be encouraged.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.14 no.1
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• pp.275-279
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• 2013

Objectives: A number of studies have shown that chronic hepatitis B virus infection is implicated in susceptibility to pancreatic cancer. However, the results are still controversial. This meta-analysis aimed to quantitatively assess the relationship between chronic hepatitis B virus infection and incidence of pancreatic cancer of cohort and case-control studies. Methods: A literature search was performed for entries from 1990 to 2012 using PUBMED and EMBASE. Studies were included if they reported odds ratios (ORs) and corresponding 95% CIs of pancreatic cancer with respect to the infection of hepatitis B virus. Results: Eight studies met the inclusion criteria, which included five case-control studies and three cohort studies. Compared with individuals who have not infection of hepatitis B virus, the pooled OR of pancreatic cancer was 1.403 (95%CI: 1.139-1.729, P=0.001) for patients with hepatitis B virus infection. Sub-group analysis by study design showed that the summary OR was 1.43 (95%CI: 1.06-1.94, P=0.021) when pooling case-control studies and 1.31 (95%CI: 1.00-1.72, P=0.05) when pooling cohort studies. Conclusion: Findings from this meta-analysis suggest that chronic hepatitis B virus infection may increase the risk of pancreatic cancer. This relationship needs to be confirmed by further follow-up studies.

• Journal of Korean Medicine Rehabilitation
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• v.27 no.3
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• pp.47-60
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• 2017

Objectives The aim of this research is to assess the effects of bee venom acupuncture for knee osteoarthritis. Methods For a systematic review, we constructed a key question as the effect of bee venom acupuncture for knee osteoarthritis and selected RCTs and nRCTs. We searched the following 15 databases without a language restriction: Pubmed, EMBASE, Cochrane CENTRAL (CENTRAL), CINAHL, AMED, seven Korean medical databases (KoreaMed, Kmbase, KISS, NDSL, KISTI, Koreantk, OASIS) and three Chinese databases including CNKI, Wanfang and VIP database. Results A total of 300 potentially relevant studies were identified; only 13 studies were selected for systematic review. Almost studies showed that bee venom acupuncture has significant effect on knee osteoarthritis. 5 studies comparing bee venom acupuncture with acupuncture were included in the meta-analysis. The effect size of standardized mean difference (SMD) was analyzed as 'small effect' with 0.47 (95% CI: 0.10~0.83, Z=2.49, p=0.01). Conclusions The research showed that bee venom acupuncture can significantly reduce pain, stiffness and improve the quality of life of patients with knee osteoarthritis. However, most of the studies included in the analysis were evaluated as methodologically high risk of bias. This suggests that there is limitation applying this study. In the future, more Randomized Controlled trial should be actively conducted.