In Vitro Assays for the Assessment of Safety and Toxicity in Pharmacopuncture Derived from Animal.

Objectives: Among the various treatment methods involving the use of natural substances, pharmacopuncture using animal venom is a relatively new form of acupuncture that has been developed in South Korea and is gaining popularity worldwide. Pharmacopuncture with animal venom is widely used in clinical practice; therefore, ensuring its procedural safety is crucial. This study aimed to evaluate the safety and toxicity of pharmacopuncture using animal venom.

Bee Venom Acupuncture for Shoulder Pain: A Literature Review of Clinical Studies.

Managing shoulder pain typically involves the use of acetaminophen or oral nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, but prolonged use of these medications can lead to dependence and various side effects. To overcome the dose dependency and side effects of these conventional drugs, animal venoms have begun to be utilized. Among them, bee venom stands out for its powerful anti-inflammatory properties, which help relieve pain and treat chronic inflammatory conditions.

A case report on hemopneumothorax caused by acupuncture at Huatuo-Jiaji points.

Acupuncture is generally safe; however, severe side effects, such as syncope and pneumothorax (PTX), have sometimes been reported. No cases of hemopneumothorax following acupuncture have been reported in Korea. This study reports a case of progression and prognosis of hemopneumothorax after acupuncture in a patient who visited a hospital for digestive disorders and underwent acupuncture treatment at the Huatuo-Jiaji points to control the autonomic nerves.

Effectiveness of Alternative Nostril Breathing on Blood Pressure: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials.

Introduction: Hypertension, a significant risk factor for cardiovascular disease, has a high prevalence rate globally. While drug use is the most common approach, lifestyle improvements are crucial. Recently, there has been a notable upsurge of interest in various breathing methods, including device-induced breathing techniques like Resperate.

Adverse events of herbal decoction: A systematic review and meta-analysis over past 10 years.

Background: Herbal decoctions (HDs) are the oldest and most common herbal medicine formulations. Different HDs exist, and some consumers are concerned that they may become contaminated during manufacturing. Therefore, the need for a safety assessment of HDs has been raised.

Effectiveness of electroacupuncture on anxiety: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.

Unlabelled: This systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to comprehensively evaluate the effectiveness of electroacupuncture (EA) for patients with anxiety. Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) on the treatment of anxiety by EA up to November 2022 were searched and collected from nine databases. Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale (HAMA), self-rating anxiety scale (SAS), and adverse reactions were used as outcome indicators.

The Effects of Acupuncture on Crohn's Disease: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Objectives: Crohn's disease is a chronic gastrointestinal disease that belongs to inflammatory bowel disease. This systematic review aims to assess the level of evidence in randomized controlled trials (RCTs) on the effects of acupuncture for Crohn's disease.

Methods: We searched 12 databases from the date of the establishment of each database up to May, 2023 for relevant RCTs.

Acupuncture Treatment for Hip Pain: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

Acupuncture treatment (AT) is an effective treatment for pain relief; however, there are few systematic reviews that have reported on the effectiveness of AT for hip pain. This systematic review aimed to evaluate the efficacy and safety of AT of hip pain. We searched eight databases for randomised controlled trials (RCTs) evaluating the effect of AT on hip pain until August 2022.

Home Healthcare Service Awareness Survey for Korean Medicine Doctors: a survey study.

Objectives: Discussions regarding "medical blind spots" in Korea's "aging society" are continuously rising. In addition, the demand for medical attention and care for the elderly and vulnerable populations continues to increase. Given this, the government is promoting the "home healthcare service" project.

Development of a Korean Medicine Online Program on Mental Health.

Objectives: The coronavirus disease 2019 has deteriorated mental health, particularly in mothers with elementary school children. Although the country has developed several health promotion programs to preserve mental health, no program has incorporated Korean medicine. Thus, this study focuses on developing vital Korean medicine mental health care programs.

Case Study of a Patient with Trigger Finger after Conducting Pharmacopuncture according to the Progress.

Our study purpose was to report the clinical application of five different pharmacopunctures (Sweet BV, Scolopendrae Corpus, Chukyu, Cervi Parvum Cornu, and Hominis Placenta) for trigger finger. A patient was admitted to Ba-reun-mom S Korean Medicine Clinic and diagnosed with trigger finger. Because the effects of each pharmacopuncture have been confirmed in various acute to chronic cases, we treated a patient diagnosed with trigger finger using pharmacopunctures Sweet BV and Scolopendrae Corpus at the acute phase, Chukyu pharmacopuncture at the acute to chronic phase, and pharmacopunctures Cervi Parvum Cornu and Hominis Placenta at the chronic phase.

Herbal Decoctions for the Levels of Sulfur Dioxide, Benzopyrene, and Mycotoxin from Traditional Korean Medicine Clinics: A Preliminary Study.

In this study, we investigated whether the levels of sulfur dioxide (SO), benzopyrene, and mycotoxins in herbal decoctions in Korea in 2019 were within normal limits. In total, 30 decoctions composed of multi-ingredient traditional herbs were sampled from traditional Korean medicine (TKM) clinics, TKM hospitals, and external herbal dispensaries in 2019. The decoctions were analyzed for SO, benzopyrene, and mycotoxins using 10 samples.

Warm needle acupuncture for osteoarthritis: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

Background: Warm needle acupuncture (WA) is considered a potential intervention in the treatment of osteoarthritis (OA).

Purpose: To systematically evaluate the clinical efficacy and safety of WA in the treatment of OA.

Study Design: Systematic review and meta-analysis METHODS: Fourteen databases were searched from their inception until May 2022.

Monitoring of Heavy Metals and Pesticide Residues of Herbal Decoctions in Traditional Korean Medicine Clinics in Korea.

In this study, we investigated whether the levels of heavy metal and pesticide residues in herbal decoctions in Korea in 2019 were within normal limits. In total, 30 decoctions composed of multi-ingredient traditional herbs were sampled from traditional Korean medicine (TKM) clinics, TKM hospitals, and external herbal dispensaries in 2019. The decoctions were analyzed for heavy metal content such as lead, arsenic, and cadmium using inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry.

Acupoint herbal patching for bronchitis: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

Background: Acupoint herbal patching (AHP) has long been used to treat patients with bronchitis in East Asia. This review assessed the efficacy and safety of AHP as a treatment for bronchitis.

Methods: We performed a literature search using the 9 databases and included randomized controlled trials (RCTs) or quasi-RCTs that used AHP for bronchitis.

L. for Blood Sugar Management: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

Introduction: L. is used for blood sugar management in patients with diabetes mellitus. This review aimed to evaluate the effect of on blood sugar management.

Hair Growth Promotion with Black Soybean Extracts: case series.

Black soybean (BS) is widely thought to prevent or alleviate hair loss, which has been demonstrated by in vitro experiments. However, few clinical studies have directly assessed the effect of BS on hair growth. To assess the safety and efficacy of BS, we administered BS extract to 10 adult patients for 3 months without any other hair products and treatments.

A Study on the Development of a Model for Providing Traditional Korean Medicine and Welfare Services for Community Care.

Objectives: This study aims to develop a community care model in traditional Korean medicine (TKM) by developing a community care participation model for the health of the elderly and deriving tasks to implement it.

Methods: This study implemented a group interview with experts. A fact-finding survey was conducted targeting 16 local governments that are implementing a leading project to identify the status of TKM service provision and welfare service linkage in all regions.

Effect of Manual Acupuncture for Mild-to-Moderate Carpal Tunnel Syndrome: A Systematic Review.

Objectives: Despite the low cost and high accessibility of manual acupuncture (MA) treatments for the carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS), this intervention has not been uniformly evaluated in systematic reviews (SR), and no SR has evaluated MA monotherapy for CTS. This review was conducted to summarize the findings and undertake a quality assessment of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) of acupuncture treatment methods for mild-to-moderate CTS to identify clinical evidence for the use of MA in CTS.

Methods: We searched five databases for articles on relevant RCTs that were published until June 2021 without imposing specific restrictions, such as age or sex, on CTS patients.

Utilization Trends and Concentration Ratio of Korean Medicine: Based on the National Health Insurance Data.

Objectives: Although Korean Medicine (KM) subsidized by the National Health Insurance (NHI) has been used for a long time, there has been no active analysis using claims data . Therefore, the purpose of this study was to examine the NHI KM utilization trend using NHI statistics and to measure the level of market concentration by year.

Methods: By restructuring the contents of NHI Statistics for Pharmaceuticals for 2010-2019, the claim cases, costs, and annual growth rates of KM were demonstrated by year, sex, age group, region, therapeutic group, and KM treatment.

Literature Review on Korean Medicine Treatment for Alopecia.

This study aimed to analyze the use of Korean medicine treatments for alopecia in among clinical studies. We identified and analyzed 22 studies from Korean databases; Oriental Medicine Advanced Searching Integrated System (OASIS), Science ON, Korean Studies Information Service System (KISS), and Research Information Sharing Service (RISS) and international database; PubMed. We analyzed the Korean medical treatment in each case and determined the tendency to use each intervention.

Quality Control of Pharmacopuncture: A Comparative Study of Good Manufacturing Practice and External Herbal Dispensary Standards.

Objectives: We aimed to compare the external herbal dispensary (EHD) evaluation criteria for pharmacopuncture and the Korea Good Manufacturing Practice (KGMP) sterile medicine standards to contribute to the establishment of quality control criteria for pharmacopuncture.

Methods: We obtained the KGMP standards from the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety and the pharmacopuncture certification criteria from the Ministry of Health and Welfare of South Korea. The EHD evaluation items were classified into three categories facilities, quality control, and validation.