RECENT RESEARCH
Acupuncture and TCM
Xie L , Ng DQ , Hesmatipour M , Acharya M , Coluzzi P , Guerrero N , Lee S , Malik S , Parajuli R , Stark C , Tain R , Zabokrtsky K , Torno L , Chan A . Electroacupuncture for the management of symptom clusters in cancer patients and survivors ( EAST ). BMC Complementary Medicine and Therapies . 2023 ; 23 , Article number : 92 .
Background : Neuropsychiatric symptoms , comprising cognitive impairment , fatigue , insomnia , depression , and anxiety , are prevalent and may co-occur during and after chemotherapy treatment for cancer . Electroacupuncture ( EA ), which involves mild electrical stimulation with acupuncture , holds great potential in addressing the management of individual symptoms . However , there is a lack of studies evaluating if EA can manage concurrent neuropsychiatric symptoms in cancer ( i . e ., symptom cluster ). Hence , we designed a trial to evaluate the efficacy , safety , and feasibility of administering EA as an intervention to mitigate neuropsychiatric symptom clusters amongst cancer patients and survivors .
Methods : The EAST study is a randomized , sham-controlled , patientand assessor-blinded clinical trial . Sixty-four cancer patients and survivors with complaints of one or more neuropsychiatric symptom ( s ) in the seven days prior to enrollment are recruited from the University of California Irvine ( UCI ) and Children ’ s Hospital of Orange County ( CHOC ). Individuals with needle phobia , metastases , bleeding disorders , electronic implants , epilepsy , exposure to acupuncture in the three months prior to enrollment , and who are breastfeeding , pregnant , or planning to get pregnant during the duration of the study will be excluded . Screening for metal fragments and claustrophobia are performed prior to the optional neuroimaging procedures . Recruited patients will be randomized ( 1:1 ) in random blocks of four or six to receive either ten weekly verum EA ( treatment arm , vEA ) or weekly sham EA ( control arm , sEA ) treatment visits with a follow-up appointment four to twelve weeks after their last treatment visit . The treatment arm will receive EA at 13 acupuncture points ( acupoints ) chosen for their therapeutic effects , while the control arm receives minimal EA at 7 non-disease-related acupoints . Questionnaires and cognitive assessments are administered , and blood drawn to assess changes in symptom clusters and biomarkers , respectively .
Conclusion : The EAST study can provide insight into the efficacy of EA , an integrative medicine modality , in the management of cancer symptom clusters in routine clinical practice .
Trial registration : This trial is registered with clinicaltrials . gov NCT05283577 .
Wang Y-y , Fan H-w , Huang X-m , Jiao Y . Disseminated Staphylococcus aureus infection after scarification wet cupping therapy : a case report and literature review . BMC Complementary Medicine and Therapies . 2023 ; 23 , Article number : 94 .
Background : Cupping therapy is a complementary and alternative medical therapy used especially in pain management . It is generally considered a safe procedure , but complications , including life-threatening infection , may still occur . Understanding these complications is essential to safe and evidence-based use of cupping in practice .
Case presentation : Here we report a rare case of disseminated Staphylococcus aureus infection after cupping therapy . After wet cupping , a 33-year-old immunocompetent woman developed fever , myalgia , and a productive cough accompanied by acute liver and kidney injury , iliopsoas abscess , and gastrointestinal bleeding . The patient was treated successfully with cefmetazole plus levofloxacin after microbiological and antimicrobial sensitivity testing .
Conclusions : Though rarely reported , clinicians , practitioners of cupping therapy , and patients should be aware of the risk of infection after cupping therapy . High hygiene standards are recommended for cupping therapy , even in immunocompetent individuals .
Aromatherapy
Montalvão MM , Felix FB , Propheta dos Santos EW , Santos JF , de Lucca W , Farias AS , de Souza Ribeiro A , Cavaleiro C , Machado SM , Scher R , Correa CB . Cytotoxic activity of essential oil from Leaves of Myrcia splendens against A549 Lung Cancer cells . BMC Complementary Medicine and Therapies . 2023 ; 23 , Article number : 139 .
Background : Plants of the Myrcia genus have been widely used in folk medicine to treat various diseases , including cancer . Myrcia splendens species has a diverse chemical constitution , but the biological activities of its essential oil have not been well investigated . In this study to out the chemistry characterization of essential oil ( EO ) from the leaves of the species M . splendens from Brazil and evaluate cytotoxic effect in A549 lung cancer cells .
Methods : M . splendens EO was obtained by hydrodistillation and analyzed by Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry ( GC-MS ). EO was isolated and evaluated for cellular viability in tumor cell lines by MTT assay . The evaluation of the formation of clones and the migratory capacity of the A549 cells treated with EO was done by the clonogenic assay and the wound healing assay . Morphological changes were observed in A549 cells by fluorescence using Phalloidin / FITC and DAPI .
Results : 22 compounds were identified in the chemical analysis of EO , corresponding to 88 % of the sample . Major compounds were the sesquiterpenic hydrocarbons bicyclogermacrene ( 15.4 %), germacrene D ( 8.9 %) and E-caryophyllene ( 10.1 %). The biological analysis of the EO showed high cytotoxic activity with an IC50 below 20 µ g / ml in the THP-1 , A549 and B16-F10 tumor cells . The treatment with EO reduced colony formation and inhibited the migratory capacity of A549 cells . Furthermore , apoptotic morphological changes in the nucleus and cytoplasm of A549 cells was observed after of treatment with EO .
100 | vol29 | no2 | JATMS