Muscle pain – a neuroanatomical basis

Stimulated by Hoheisel et al 2025.[1] Top part of Figure 1 in Hoheisel et al 2025.[1] DRG – dorsal root ganglionFG – fluorogold or fluorochrome yellowc-fos – a protein from the Fos family widely used as a marker for neuronal activityc-fos-ir – c-fos immunoreactivityDH – dorsal horn (of the spinal cord)VLP – ventral posterolateral nucleus … Continue reading Muscle pain – a neuroanatomical basis

EA or MA for CHHF 2024

Inspired by Kwon et al 2024.[1] AI generated image. EA – electroacupunctureMA – manual acupuncture (referred to as AC in the paper)CHHF – cold hypersensitivity in the hands and feetVAS – visual analogue scaleWHOQOL-BREF – World Health Organisation quality of life brief scaleQoL – quality of lifeANOVA – analysis of variance – key to acronyms … Continue reading EA or MA for CHHF 2024

EA for OAK 2024

Inspired by Liu et al 2024.[1] Image from HVAC photoshoot 2012.[6] EA – electroacupunctureOA – osteoarthritisOAK – OA of the kneeSR – systematic reviewNICE – the National Institute for Health and Care ExcellenceHVAC – high volume acupuncture clinicRoB – risk of biasNSAIDs – non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugsIPDM – individual patient data meta-analysisGRADE – Grading of Recommendations, … Continue reading EA for OAK 2024

Acupuncture for chronic sciatica 2024

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

Acupuncture for CP CPPS in drinkers

Inspired by Zhu et al 2024.[1] Points used in the trial adapted from Supplement 3 of the publication.[2] CP – chronic prostatitisCPPS – chronic pelvic pain syndromeRCT – randomised controlled trialMA – manual acupunctureNIH-CPSI – National Institute of Health Chronic Prostatitis Symptom Index – key to acronyms This is secondary analysis of a large RCT … Continue reading Acupuncture for CP CPPS in drinkers

Segmental acupuncture for rUTI 2024

Stimulated by Ots et al 2024.[1] The centre and right diagrams represent the protocol used in the trial.The diagram on the left is a segmental EA protocol favoured by MC. UTI – urinary tract infectionrUTI – recurrent UTIRCT – randomised controlled trialDZA – Deutsche Zeitschrift für Akupunktur – key to acronyms This is the largest … Continue reading Segmental acupuncture for rUTI 2024

Acupuncture vs BFT in FI

Stimulated by Ng et al 2024.[1] Photo by Coleen Rivas on Unsplash. This image is taken in the Super Tree Grove, which is one of the Gardens by the Bay, built on reclaimed land in Singapore Marina Bay. BFT – biofeedback therapyFI – faecal incontinencePFE – pelvic floor exercisesUCL – University College LondonIF – impact … Continue reading Acupuncture vs BFT in FI

Acupuncture AE at Huatuojiaji

Stimulated by Jeong et al 2024.[1] Needling the multifidus muscle at one finger breadth from the midline. On the right side the needle aims correctly towards the lamina and on the left the lamina is missed. AE – adverse eventIF – impact factorKMD – Korean medical doctorCXR – chest x-ray (film)CT – computed tomography – … Continue reading Acupuncture AE at Huatuojiaji

Acupuncture versus topiramate in chronic migraine 2024

Stimulated by Liu et al 2024.[1] IF – impact factorRCT – randomised controlled trialART – Acupuncture Randomised Trial (part of the Modellvorhaben Akupunktur)RR50 – responder rate 50 (50 refers to a reduction of 50% or more in headache days)MMDs – monthly migraine daysNICE – National Institute for Health and Care ExcellenceNMA – network meta-analysis – … Continue reading Acupuncture versus topiramate in chronic migraine 2024

EA plus CBZ for TN 2024

Stimulated by Li et al 2024.[1] EA – electroacupunctureCBZ – carbamazepineTN – trigeminal neuralgiaIF – impact factorG – googletid – ter in die (latin for three times a day) – key to acronyms I chose this paper in the Journal of Neurology (IF 6.0) because the 2x2 factorial design is uncommon in acupuncture research from … Continue reading EA plus CBZ for TN 2024