Publications by authors named "Zhai Weihang"
Disordered Consciousness (DOC) is among neurological disorders for which there is currently no admitted treatment. The pathogenesis of DOC is still unclear, covering a variety of indistinguishable types of diseases, high misdiagnosis rate and poor prognosis. Most treatments remain to be clarified in the future to provide adequate evidence for clinical guidance.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFDiabetes and depression are common comorbid conditions that impose a substantial health burden. Acupuncture may effectively improve symptoms in patients with diabetes and depression, but the underlying mechanism remains unclear. Brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) may play a vital role in the effects of acupuncture on diabetes and depression comorbidity.
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- Non-invasive brain stimulation (NIBS) techniques are increasingly used to help patients with disorders of consciousness (DOC), particularly those in a minimally conscious state (MCS), but their effectiveness needs improvement.
- This study plans to explore the combined effects of transcutaneous auricular vagus nerve stimulation (taVNS) and high-definition transcranial direct current stimulation (HD-tDCS) on consciousness recovery in 84 MCS patients over a 4-week treatment period.
- The primary goal is to evaluate treatment effects using the coma recovery scale-revised (CRS-R) at multiple points, while also monitoring safety through adverse effects and analyzing brain activity with EEG microstates.
Implantable cervical vagus nerve stimulation (iVNS) is a representative and promising neuromodulation. However, the invasive nature restricts its application. Traditional auricular acupuncture treatment has a long history.
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- Transcutaneous auricular vagus nerve stimulation (taVNS) was tested in a study involving 22 patients with first-episode major depressive disorder (MDD) to understand its effects over an 8-week period.
- The research utilized resting-state functional MRI (rs-fMRI) to assess brain activity before and after treatment, comparing results with 23 healthy controls to identify treatment effects.
- Results showed that taVNS decreased abnormal brain activity in the inferior ventral striatum (VSi) while increasing it in the precuneus, leading to a decreased functional connectivity between these areas and a positive correlation with depression improvement.
Background: Transcutaneous auricular vagus nerve stimulation (taVNS) is a non-invasive neuromodulation technique. Several studies have reported the effectiveness of taVNS in patients with disorders of consciousness (DOC); however, differences in the modulation paradigm have led to inconsistent treatment outcomes.
Methods/design: This prospective exploratory trial will include 15 patients with a minimally conscious state (MCS) recruited according to the coma recovery scale-revised (CRS-R).
Objective: To evaluate the clinical effect of transcutaneous auricular vagus nerve nerve stimulation (taVNS) on disorders of consciousness (DOC) patients with Coma Recovery Scale-Revised (CRS-R) and cerebral cortex activity by electroencephalogram (EEG) detection.
Methods: Randomized controlled methods were used to evaluate the clinical effect of taVNS on patients with DOC. Twelve patients with initial CRS-R of 6-10 were randomly divided into the treatment group of taVNS and control group of transcutaneous non-auricular vague nerve stimulation (tnVNS).
Acupuncture for brain diseases: Conception, application, and exploration.
Anat Rec (Hoboken)
December 2023
The brain is probably the most complex organ in the human body. It has been the hot spot and direction of brain science research all over the world to deeply study the pathogenesis of various kinds of brain diseases and find effective treatment methods. Acupuncture is a nonpharmacological therapy of traditional Chinese medicine originating from ancient clinical practice.
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