Inspired by Hong et al 2022,[1] Deuel et al 2020,[2] and Tsai et al 2020.[3] PD – Parkinson's Disease Photo by Bess Hamiti on Pexels.com Before I launch into this blog, I want to clarify that the three subjects in the title are almost completely unrelated, apart from the fact that acupuncture figures in all … Continue reading Epigenetics PD and medical costs
Inspired by Ton et al 2020.[1] Photo by Hernan Pauccara on Pexels.com CHD – Coronary Heart DiseaseOA – Osteoarthritis This week another large retrospective cohort study from Taiwan. In this paper the target group was patients with osteoarthritis (OA) identified from the LHID 2000 – the Longitudinal Health Insurance Database 2000. The LHID 2000 is … Continue reading CHD risk in OA 2000-12
Stimulated by Jung et al 2020.[1] Image from Slashme on Wikipedia.I wonder if the person or committee that came up with the acronym MACE had ever seen this image of the fruit of Myristica fragrans (nutmeg) split open to show the seed with the surrounding aril (also known as mace). I cannot help thinking it … Continue reading Acupuncture and MACE
Stimulated by Lin et al 2020,[1] Park et al 2020,[2] and Khan et al 2019.[3] Shifen Waterfalls, Shifen, Taiwan. Image by Vernon Raineil Cenzon on Unsplash, modified by MC in Lightroom. What is the risk of mortality associated with acupuncture? Well, it depends on the context of course, and I am using this title to draw together a … Continue reading Risk of mortality 2020
Image by Paweł Czerwiński on Unsplash. The main paper this week was an obvious choice as it is a big clinical trial published in a mainstream general medicine journal. Currently the paper has not surfaced on PubMed, although it is published online. I was tipped off by an email from the journal editor as I had been one … Continue reading Functional dyspepsia 2020
Stimulated by Huang et al 2020.[1] Image by Kai Dahms on Unsplash. This is the first BMAS blog that highlights a protocol, rather than the results of research. I rarely read protocols! If it looks like a big study or I know the team, I might have a quick look at the abstract. Protocols really … Continue reading Should I read a protocol?
Stimulated by McKee et al 2020.[1] Image by Ryan Loughlin on Unsplash. We called it HVAC (“H-vac”), the high-volume acupuncture clinic that was set up at RLHH after its refurbishment in the early noughties. RLHH stood for the Royal London Homeopathic Hospital, but now it is called the Royal London Hospital for Integrated Medicine (RLHIM). … Continue reading High volume acupuncture
Stimulated by Moustgaard et al 2020.[1] Photo by Mitchell Luo on Unsplash."We are only going to look at double-blind randomised sham-controlled trials of acupuncture. No matter what the cost." The BMJ still comes in paper form through my door every week. It is usually in time for leafing through with my coffee on a Saturday morning, if I … Continue reading Blinding – where is the bias?
Stimulated by three review papers appearing on PubMed in the last week of 2019.[1–3] Photo by Elijah Hail on Unsplash. This time of year is ripe with reviews… usually the past year on broadcast media rather than research reviews, as I have chosen here. They are all quite different and I aim to highlight different aspects in each … Continue reading A review or three from 2019
Stimulated by Gao et al 2019.[1] Photo by The Honest Company on Unsplash.Well this little chap looks a little oriental to me, so as all the trials in the highlighted SR were performed in China, he seemed most appropriate. Much as I would have liked to let this one slide by unannounced, I feel obliged … Continue reading Acupuncture versus clomiphene controversy
