Osteoarthritis and Chinese Medicine: An Overview of Theories and Evidence

Osteoarthritis (OA) has been treated with Chinese medicine (CM) for hundreds of years, albeit under the auspices of other clinical descriptors understood within the field of CM. This paper provides an overview of how OA is typically understood and treated within CM. OA has typically fallen under the clinical descriptor of ‘bi syndrome’ (painful obstruction syndrome). As theory continues to develop, however, new ideas are emerging regarding its pathogenesis that have consequences for treatment - that OA should be considered as a combination of ‘wei syndrome’ and bi syndrome. The therapeutic thrust of herbal medicine and acupuncture thus shifts from a focus on the Kidney zang to the Liver zang, and consequently different kinds of herbs are chosen within medicinal formulas.

By US federal government [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons

The Treatment of Pelvic Pain with Acupuncture: Part 1


This paper presents an overview of the biomedical model of myofascial pelvic pain (MPP) and its treatment using a Western acupuncture approach. The discussion includes an introduction to the function and anatomy of the pelvic girdle; a definition of pelvic pain, with research that supports the use of acupuncture as an effective intervention in the management of chronic myofascial pelvic pain (CMPP); a clinical reasoning model to assist practitioners in making a correct diagnosis and providing effective intervention for the management of CMPP; a description of the Western acupuncture approach for the deactivation of trigger points within the abdominal wall, pelvic basin and hip; and an exploration of the use of acupuncture in pregnancy-related pelvic pain with relevant support from research trials. Part Two of this paper will be presented in a future issue of this journal, and will demonstrate how the Western and traditional Chinese models of MPP can be integrated. In the opinion of the author, neither model offers all the answers, but the two can be integrated for a successful and sensitive approach to the management of this complex pain state.

Henry Vandyke Carter [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons

Prescription of Chinese Herbal Medicine in Pattern-Based Traditional Chinese Medicine Treatment for Depression: A Systematic Review

Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) treatments are often prescribed based on individuals' pattern diagnoses. A systematic review of randomized controlled trials in Chinese and English literatures on TCM pattern-based treatment for depression has therefore been conducted. A total of 61 studies, 2504 subjects, and 27 TCM patterns were included. Due to the large variation of TCM pattern among participants, we only analyzed the top four commonly studied TCM patterns: liver qi depression, liver depression and spleen deficiency, dual deficiency of the heart, and spleen and liver depression and qi stagnation.

Image: Kamwo Meridian Herbs all rights reserved

Current Understanding on Antihepatocarcinoma Effects of Xiao Chai Hu Tang and Its Constituents

Xiao Chai Hu Tang (XCHT), a compound formula originally recorded in an ancient Chinese medical book Shanghanlun, has been used to treat chronic liver diseases for a long period of time in China. Although extensive studies have been demonstrated the efficacy of this formula to treat chronic hepatitis, hepatic fibrosis, and hepatocarcinoma, how it works against these diseases still awaits full understanding.

Image: Kamwo Meridian Herbs all rights reserved.

A Love of Dermatology

Beginning in antiquity, the stylized heart has symbolized the spiritual, emotional, and moral core of human character. Over 2 millennia ago, the Roman surgeon Galen believed the heart to be the seat of emotion.1 Stoics taught that it physically represented the soul, and Aristotle considered the heart to be the origin of all logical thought, reason, and passion.1,2 What the traditional heart shape actually depicts remains unclear. Bearing only slight resemblance to the anatomic human heart, many claim the symbol arose from the ancient Sumerian cuneiform for woman.2 Nevertheless, the shape continues to represent romantic love the world over, as evidenced on St Valentine’s Day each February.

Wikimedia Commons. (n.d.). [Big pink heart]. Wikimedia Commons. Available here.

The Rewarding Work of Massage for Addiction Recovery

When you say good-bye to clients at the end of a typical massage session, you probably invite them to re-book, or at least encourage them to return for another session so you can help maintain their pain or stress relief.When Shannon Scearce, C.M.T., says good-bye to clients, she sincerely hopes she will never see them again.

Lubyanka [CC BY-SA 3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)], via Wikimedia Commons
 

Spouts of Fury: Where Tea and Kung Fu collide

Ya'an, China, is home to some of the country's best tea. It's also home to the amazing long spout tea performers. This performance art, which dates back to 220 AD, mixes Kung Fu and the long spout metal teapot. Liu Xumin is a tea performer who has spent years mastering this ancient art form. His hope, he says, is to "achieve the integration of tea pot and human, of heaven and human, and of tea and human."

By Thomas Berg from Oslo, Norway (More tea?) [CC BY-SA 2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons

XING: On The Nature Of Herbs and the Misuse of the term Temperature

Temperature has a very distinct meaning in the Western world, as we speak of temperature on a daily basis in terms of the weather and indoor environment, water that we enter (e.g., swimming pool or spa), in relation to cooking of food, and our body.  These are references to measurements that have a consistent application and meaning in relation to thermal energy.  Because of the wide-spread use of the term, it carries with it certain connotations based on shared experiences.

By ErgoSum88 (Own work) [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons

The Anticancer Properties and Apoptosis-inducing Mechanisms of Cinnamaldehyde and the Herbal Prescription Huang-Lian-Jie-Du-Tang (黃連解毒湯 Huáng Lián Jiě Dú Tang) in Human Hepatoma Cells

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) has long been one of the most important causes of cancer mortality in the world. Many natural products and traditional herbal medicines have been used to treat HCC in Asian countries such as Japan, Korea, Taiwan, and China. The present review aims to describe the anticancer properties and apoptotic mechanisms of cinnamaldehyde, the bioactive ingredient isolated from cinnamon trees, and the herbal prescription Huang-Lian-Jie-Du-Tang (黃連解毒湯 Huáng Lián Jiě Dú Tang; HLJDT) against human hepatoma cells in vitro and in vivo. Implication of their treatment for the development of targeted therapy against HCC is discussed.

Using the Spirits of the Points: The Heart Meridian

Certainly, the health of the body and mind are important. We can eat right, exercise, study and learn in order to strengthen these levels, and yet neglect the most essential part of ourselves: the spirit - who we are at the core of our identity.

By Patrick J. Lynch, medical illustrator (Patrick J. Lynch, medical illustrator) [CC BY 2.5 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.5)], via Wikimedia Commons

Photographer Spends Hours on Bridges to Capture Colorful Overhead Portraits of Street Vendors

Waking up at 4 am, the vendors—often female migrant workers—pack their bicycles to the brim with fresh flowers and fruit, walking miles throughout the course of the day to peddle their wares. Heerink lived in Vietnam for many years and became fascinated with these street vendors, so much so that she sought to capture their beauty in a unique way.

Images courtesy of Loes Heerink. Image sourced from Creative Boom. Available here.

Cross-Cultural Medicine

Cultural competency is an essential skill for family physicians because of increasing ethnic diversity among patient populations. Culture, the shared beliefs and attitudes of a group, shapes ideas of what constitutes illness and acceptable treatment. A cross-cultural interview should elicit the patient’s perception of the illness and any alternative therapies he or she is undergoing as well as facilitate a mutually acceptable treatment plan.

Image sourced from the American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP). Available here.

Efficacy of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Suan Zao Ren Tang, for Sleep Disturbance during Methadone Maintenance

Methadone maintenance therapy is an effective treatment for opiate dependence, but more than three-quarters of persons receiving the treatment report sleep quality disturbances. In this double-blind, randomized, controlled trial, we recruited 90 individuals receiving methadone for at least one month who reported sleep disturbances and had Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) scores > 5. The purpose of this study was to determine whether Suan Zao Ren Tang, one of the most commonly prescribed traditional Chinese medications for treatment of insomnia, improves subjective sleep among methadone-maintained persons with disturbed sleep quality.

Nikolai Kuznetsov [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons

Xiao Yao San against Corticosterone-Induced Stress Injury

Previous studies have revealed that uncontrollable stress can impair the synaptic plasticity and firing property of hippocampal neurons, which influenced various hippocampal-dependent tasks including memory, cognition, behavior, and mood. In this work, we had investigated the effects and mechanisms of the Chinese herbal medicine Xiao Yao San (XYS) against corticosterone-induced stress injury in primary hippocampal neurons (PHN) cells.

By Flickr [CC BY 2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons

Fermented Chinese Formula Shuan-Tong-Ling Protects Brain Microvascular Endothelial Cells against Oxidative Stress Injury

Fermented Chinese formula Shuan-Tong-Ling (STL), composed of fourteen medicinal herbs, was an experiential formula by Dr. Zhigang Mei for treating vascular encephalopathy, but the underlying mechanisms remained unknown. In this study, we aimed to investigate the protective effects of fermented STL on hydrogen peroxide- (H2O2-) induced injury in rat brain microvascular endothelial cells (BMECs) and the possible mechanisms. 

Figure 5 from "Evid Based Complement Alternat Med. 2016; 2016: 5154290." Published online 2016 Dec 21. doi: 10.1155/2016/5154290. Image sourced from NCBI. Available here.

Chinese herbal drugs for the treatment of diabetic retinopathy

Several Chinese herbs, indeed, elicit potent anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, anti-angiogenic, anti-apoptotic, peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-gamma receptor agonistic, platelet-activating factor antagonistic, aldose reductase inhibitory and various other beneficial pharmacological activities, required to counteract the pathological conditions prevalent in retina during diabetes.

Image sourced from Wiley Online Library. Available here.