Stimulated by Hyun et al 2026.[1] Gadolinium rim enhancement of a sequestered disc on T1-weighted MRI... see PID regression 2021. KM – Korean medicine (referring to traditional Korean medicine, but mostly acupuncture)LDH – lumbar disc herniationIF – impact factorTKR – total knee replacementOA – osteoarthritisHIRA – health insurance review and assessment service (South Korea)NHIS – … Continue reading KM in LDH 2026
Stimulated by Hao et al 2026.[1] LDH – lumbar disc herniationRCT – randomised controlled trialBUCM – Beijing University of Chinese MedicineVAS – visual analogue scaleSP – spinous process of the vertebra (the lower border in this case)DN – deep needling group (needles placed at 1 cun lateral to the SP and 60 to 70mm deep)CN … Continue reading Deep acupuncture in LDH 2026
Stimulated by Gyeltshen et al 2025.[1] Photo by Pema Gyamtsho on Pexels.com IF – impact factorEiC – editor in chiefSLR – straight leg raising (the most famous test for sciatica, but not a terribly good one) – key to acronyms This is a somewhat smaller trial (n=70) than the last one I highlighted on sciatic … Continue reading Acupuncture vs gabapentin for sciatica in Bhutan
Stimulated by Shi et al 2025.[1] Diagram illustrating the acupuncture protocol from Shi et al 2025 [1] – unilateral points are in the unaffected side. LDH – lumbar disc herniationRCT – randomised controlled trialVAS – visual analogue scaleJOA – Japanese Orthopaedic Association score for low back painSIJ – sacroiliac jointSR – systematic reviewGRADE – Grading … Continue reading Acupuncture plus manipulation in LDH
Stimulated by Jorgensen et al 2024.[1] This is a section from the BMAS TrP chart with referral patterns relevant to the topic of this blog. MSK – musculoskeletalLS – lumbosacralIF – impact factorEDX – electrodiagnostic medicineNCS – nerve conduction studiesMPS – myofascial pain syndromeFAI – femoroacetabular impingementTrPs – trigger points (myofascial is implied)GTPS – greater trochanteric … Continue reading MSK mimics of LS radiculopathy – part 2
Inspired by Tu et al 2024.[1] IF – impact factorBUCM – Beijing University of Chinese MedicineRCT – randomised controlled trialVAS – visual analogue scoreODI – Oswestry Disability IndexMCID – minimum important clinical difference – key to acronyms A general internal medicine physician colleague from UCLH picked up this paper from JAMA Internal Medicine (IF 39.0) … Continue reading Acupuncture for chronic sciatica 2024
Stimulated by Zhu et al 2024.[1] DLSS – degenerative lumbar spinal stenosisIF – impact factorRCT – randomised controlled trialNRS – numerical rating scaleRMDQ – Roland Morris disability questionnaireMCID – minimum clinical important differenceSSSQ – Swiss spinal stenosis questionnaire – key to acronyms This paper in Annals of Internal Medicine (IF 39.2) reports on a multi-centre … Continue reading Acupuncture for DLSS
Stimulated by Bateman et al 2024.[1] This is a section from the BMAS TrP chart with referral patterns relevant to the topic of this blog. MSK – musculoskeletalLS – lumbosacralIF – impact factorLBP – low back painDRG – dorsal root ganglionNCS – nerve conduction studiesEMG – electromyographyOA – osteoarthritisFAI – femoroacetabular impingementQL – quadratus lumborumICT … Continue reading MSK mimics of LS radiculopathy
Stimulated by Albert et al 2023.[1] Photo by Neonbrand on Unsplash. PID – prolapsed intervertebral discLBP – low back painNSAIDs – non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugsSD – standard deviation key to acronyms This paper was published online in mid-December, but I could not access the full text. I wrote to the first author, Hanne Albert, and she kindly sent me … Continue reading PID resorption 2024
Stimulated by Jeong et al,[1] and Huang et al.[2] Screengrab from Day 19 of ‘What’s the point’. I am highlighting 2 papers. The first listed above is most recent and raises some interesting points, but the second paper, which is from last year, is more important from my perspective. I reviewed the latter for the … Continue reading Sciatica 2020
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