Eye-acupuncture (EA) is a fine-needle acupuncture therapy for systemic diseases. This bibliometric analysis aims to provide a comprehensive review of the characteristics of EA for ischemic or hemorrhagic apoplexy based on clinical studies.

A total of 195 clinical studies from six databases such as CNKI, VIP, Wanfang Data, SinoMed, PubMed and the Cochrane Library from inception to December 31, 2017 were included. Bibliometric information mainly including study type, participant characteristics, intervention and comparison details, and outcomes were extracted. Data was analyzed descriptively using SPSS® software to determine their distribution (range, interquartile range) and central tendency (median).

The studies covered 108 RCTs, 36 controlled clinical trials, 45 case series and 6 case reports on EA for treatment of ischemic or hemorrhagic apoplexy, involved 15466 stroke patients. EA was used at different stages of ischemic or hemorrhagic apoplexy: acute stage (n = 38), recovery (n = 32), sequela (n = 13) and unclear (n = 112). The most frequently used EA acupoints were in the upper-jiao and lower-jiao regions. The commonly used comparisons were EA alone versus traditional acupuncture, or EA plus traditional acupuncture versus traditional acupuncture. Neurological deficit scale, Modified Barthel Index, and activities of daily living were the most frequently used outcome measures.

EA as an adjuvant therapy is effective and safe in treating stroke at acute and recovery stages, but high-quality RCTs are lacking.

To assess the effectiveness and safety of electroacupuncture for the treatment of diabetic peripheral neuropathy (DPN). Clinical studies in China have shown the beneficial effect of electroacupuncture compared with conventional medicine. However, the effectiveness of electroacupuncture has not been well acknowledged internationally.

We searched the following databases from their inception through February 2016: MEDLINE, the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (April, 2015), SinoMed, China National Knowledge Infrastructure, VIP, Wanfang Database, Chinese Important Conference Papers Database, and the Chinese Dissertation Database. Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) were included if they compared electroacupuncture to conventional medicine, placebo, or no treatment on DPN patients. RevMan 5.3 software was used for data analysis, with effect estimate presented as relative risk (RR) and mean difference (MD) with a 95% confidence interval (CI).

Eleven RCTs involving 837 participants were included. The methodological quality of included RCTs was generally poor in terms of sequence generation, allocation concealment, blinding, incomplete outcome data, and selective outcome reporting. Meta-analysis showed that electroacupuncture had a better effect on global symptom improvement than methylcobalamin (RR = 1.29; 95% CI: 1.14–1.46) and vitamin B (RR = 1.60; 95% CI: 1.33–1.94). Only two RCTs reported adverse events.

Because of the high risk of bias of included trials, we cannot make a conclusion on the effectiveness of electroacupuncture for DPN. More rigorously designed and conducted multicenter double-blind RCTs are needed to support the use of electroacupuncture for DPN.

To assess the effectiveness and safety of acupoint injection for the treatment of asthma.

Six electronic databases were searched for randomized controlled trials (RCTs) of acupoint injection for asthma. Two authors extracted data and assessed methodological quality independently using the Cochrane Collaboration Risk of Bias tool. Data were evaluated using RevMan v5.2.

Eighteen RCTs involving 1913 participants with asthma were identified. Overall methodological quality of the RCTs was classified as unclear risk of bias. Western medicine (12 RCTs) was injected most frequently into acupoints, followed by Chinese herbal medicine (four RCTs), vitamins (one RCT), and Chinese herbal medicine combined with Western medicine (one RCT). Four RCTs used only one acupoint [ST36 (two RCTs), BL13, CV22], whereas the other RCTs selected multiple acupoints (among which BL13 was used most frequently). One RCT reported mortality, no RCT reported quality of life, 15 RCTs reported the symptom improvement rate, one RCT reported asthma control test (ACT) data, one RCT reported the duration of asthma, three RCTs reported the mean time that asthma was controlled (MTAC), and 13 RCTs reported lung-function tests (LFTs). Some RCTs showed acupoint injection may improve the attack time of asthma, MTAC, and LFTs. Five RCTs reported the outcome of adverse events and showed no significant differences between the acupoint injection group and control group.

The findings suggest that acupoint injection may be effective for improving ACT data, duration of asthma, MTAC and LFTs. However, the evidence is insufficient owing to the poor methodological quality of the RCTs.

Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) has been taught widely in the both Eastern and Western world countries. This study compared the origin, student source, duration, and curriculum design of TCM higher education programs in China and five Western countries.

We searched the Internet and the China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI) database to gather relevant information.

All the six countries offer acupuncture and/or Chinese herbal medicine programs at universities and/or private schools. However, there are great large differences among them in the education of curriculum and TCM students enrollment and curriculum policies of TCM courses.

There are large differences among their curriculum and enrollment policies. This comparison should provide information about the further development of international standards in TCM education.

Cupping as a traditional therapy is used to treat a myriad of health conditions, including pain. This systematic review assessed the effectiveness and safety of cupping for different types of pain.

Thirteen databases and four trial registries were searched for randomized clinical trials. Meta-analysis of data was conducted if there was non-significant clinical and statistical heterogeneity (measured by I² test) among trials.

Sixteen trials with 921 participants were eligible and included. Six trials were assessed as low risk of bias, another six trials were of unclear risk of bias, and the remaining four trials were of high risk of bias. Pain was related to three acute and seven chronic diseases. Meta-analysis showed a beneficial effect of cupping compared to wait-list control (visual analogue scale (VAS), MD −1.85 cm, 95%CI −2.66 to −1.04) and heat therapy (numerical rating scale, MD −2.05 cm, 95%CI −2.93 to −1.17). Cupping combined with acupuncture was superior to acupuncture alone on post-treatment pain intensity (VAS, MD −1.18 cm, 95%CI −1.68 to −0.68), however, no difference was found between this comparison based on changes in pain intensity (difference of VAS, MD 0.16 cm, 95%CI −0.54 to 0.87). Results from other single studies showed significant benefit of cupping compared with conventional drugs or usual care. Hematoma and pain at the treated site, increasing local pain or tingling were reported as mild adverse effects of cupping.

This review suggests a potential positive short-term effect of cupping therapy on reducing pain intensity compared with no treatment, heat therapy, usual care, or conventional drugs.