Standardised versus individualised multiherb Chinese herbal medicine for oligomenorrhoea and amenorrhoea in polycystic ovary syndrome: a randomised feasibility and pilot study in the UK.

Objectives: To explore feasibility of a randomised study using standardised or individualised multiherb Chinese herbal medicine (CHM) for oligomenorrhoea and amenorrhoea in women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), to pilot study methods and to obtain clinical data to support sample size calculations.

Design: Prospective, pragmatic, randomised feasibility and pilot study with participant and practitioner blinding.

Setting: 2 private herbal practices in the UK.

Depression and anxiety in ovarian cancer: a systematic review and meta-analysis of prevalence rates.

Objectives: To systematically review the literature pertaining to the prevalence of depression and anxiety in patients with ovarian cancer as a function of treatment stage.

Design: Systematic review and meta-analysis.

Participants: 3623 patients with ovarian cancer from primary research investigations.

A quantitative analysis of the prevalence of clinical depression and anxiety in patients with prostate cancer undergoing active surveillance.

Objective: To quantitatively determine the prevalence of anxiety and depression in men on active surveillance (AS).

Design: Cross-sectional questionnaire survey.

Setting: Secondary care prostate cancer (PCa) clinics across South, Central and Western England.

Mindfulness for the self-management of fatigue, anxiety, and depression in women with metastatic breast cancer: a mixed methods feasibility study.

The impact of living with metastatic breast cancer (MBC) is considerable and psychosocial support can be beneficial. Mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR) can help self-management of anxiety, depression, quality of life (QoL), and fatigue and has been evaluated in early-stage breast cancer but not MBC. This study investigated the acceptability and feasibility of providing MBSR for women with MBC and of introducing MBSR into a National Health Service (NHS) setting.

Psychological covariates of longitudinal changes in back-related disability in patients undergoing acupuncture.

Objectives: To identify psychological covariates of longitudinal changes in back-related disability in patients undergoing acupuncture.

Materials And Methods: A longitudinal postal questionnaire study was conducted with data collection at baseline (pretreatment), 2 weeks, 3, and 6 months later. A total of 485 patients were recruited from 83 acupuncturists before commencing acupuncture for back pain.

Depression and anxiety in prostate cancer: a systematic review and meta-analysis of prevalence rates.

Objectives: To systematically review the literature pertaining to the prevalence of depression and anxiety in patients with prostate cancer as a function of treatment stage.

Design: Systematic review and meta-analysis.

Participants: 4494 patients with prostate cancer from primary research investigations.

Manipulative therapies for infantile colic.

Background: Infantile colic is a common disorder, affecting around one in six families, and in 2001 was reported to cost the UK National Health Service in excess of £65 million per year (Morris 2001). Although it usually remits by six months of age, there is some evidence of longer-term sequelae for both children and parents.Manipulative therapies, such as chiropractic and osteopathy, have been suggested as interventions to reduce the severity of symptoms.

A systematic literature review of complementary and alternative medicine prevalence in EU.

Background: Studies suggest that complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) is widely used in the European Union (EU). We systematically reviewed data, reporting research quality and the prevalence of CAM use by citizens in Europe; what it is used for, and why.

Methods: We searched for general population surveys of CAM use by using Ovid MEDLINE (1948 to September 2010), Cochrane Library (1989 to September 2010), CINAHL (1989 to September 2010), EMBASE (1980 to September 2010), PsychINFO including PsychARTICLES (1989 to September 2010), Web of Science (1989 to September 2010), AMED (1985 to September 2010), and CISCOM (1989 to September 2010).

Does needling sensation (de qi) affect treatment outcome in pain? Analysis of data from a larger single-blind, randomised controlled trial.

Background: Insertion of an acupuncture needle into an acupuncture point typically generates a range of sensations called 'de qi'. Most acupuncturists are taught that obtaining de qi is important when treating patients with pain but this can be quite uncomfortable for patients.

Objective: This study assesses the importance of the strength of de qi, on the clinical outcome in osteoarthritic pain.

Prevalence of complementary medicine use in pediatric cancer: a systematic review.

Context: Complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) is used by pediatric patients with cancer, but the actual frequency of CAM use is undetermined.

Objective: In this systematic review we summarize the current evidence on the prevalence of CAM use in pediatric patients with cancer and assess the reported quality of included studies.

Methods: We systematically searched 6 major electronic databases, reference lists of existing reviews, and personal files.

Elevation of Candida IgG antibodies in patients with medically unexplained symptoms.

Background: The hypothesis that an immunologic reaction to Candida yeasts, present in the gastrointestinal tract, causes a diffuse collection of multisystem symptoms is not generally accepted within conventional medicine. A questionnaire, the Fungus Related Disease Questionnaire (FRDQ-7), was previously developed and used to identify patients for a randomized, placebo-controlled trial of the nonabsorbed antifungal drug nystatin. Nystatin was superior to placebo in relieving these symptoms.

Do skin prick and conjunctival provocation tests predict symptom severity in seasonal allergic rhinoconjunctivitis?

Background: In the investigation of seasonal allergic rhinoconjunctivitis (SAR), quantitative skin and conjunctival allergen challenge tests are used to measure individual allergen sensitivity. These tests are reproducible and relate well to prevalence but their relationship to symptom severity is less well established.

Objective: We wished to determine if quantitative skin prick tests (QSPT) and conjunctival provocation tests (CPTs) using a single grass pollen allergen extract are reproducible and predict symptom severity in SAR.

A non-invasive method for in situ quantification of subpopulation behaviour in mixed cell culture.

Ongoing advances in quantitative molecular- and cellular-biology highlight the need for correspondingly quantitative methods in tissue-biology, in which the presence and activity of specific cell-subpopulations can be assessed in situ. However, many experimental techniques disturb the natural tissue balance, making it difficult to draw realistic conclusions concerning in situ cell behaviour. In this study, we present a widely applicable and minimally invasive method which combines fluorescence cell labelling, retrospective image analysis and mathematical data processing to detect the presence and activity of cell subpopulations, using adhesion patterns in STRO-1 immunoselected human mesenchymal populations and the homogeneous osteoblast-like MG63 continuous cell line as an illustration.

A single-blinded, randomized pilot study evaluating the aroma of Lavandula augustifolia as a treatment for mild insomnia.

Background: Insomnia is the most common of all sleep complaints and is under-researched. The current treatments of choice are conventional hypnotics agents, but these have potential for serious adverse reactions. Uncontrolled and anecdotal evidence suggests that lavender oil is an effective treatment for insomnia, but this has not been formally investigated.

Can a standardized acupuncture technique palliate disabling breathlessness: a single-blind, placebo-controlled crossover study.

Study Objectives: The management of disabling breathlessness is poor, and a standardized form of acupuncture has been reported as offering benefit. This study was designed to evaluate the efficacy of standardized acupuncture treatment.

Design: A single-blind, randomized, crossover study.

Enzyme potentiated desensitisation in treatment of seasonal allergic rhinitis: double blind randomised controlled study.

Objective: To assess the efficacy of enzyme potentiated desensitisation in the treatment of severe summer hay fever poorly controlled by pharmacotherapy.

Design: Double blind randomised placebo controlled parallel group study.

Setting: Hospital in Hampshire.