• The Journal of Internal Korean Medicine
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• v.45 no.3
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• pp.335-341
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• 2024

Objectives: Patients with cancer eventually fail to respond to therapy when malignant cells develop effective ways to evade immunosurveillance. Conventional cancer treatments, such as radiation therapy and chemotherapy, aim to cure the disease or prolong the patient's life. However, the toxicity and side effects of conventional treatments limit their efficacy. Herbal medicine is a typical complementary and integrative form of medicine for cancer treatment in Asia. This protocol evaluates the effectiveness of herbal medicines in improving the immune function of patients with cancer. Methods: The following electronic databases will be searched: MEDLINE via PubMed, EMBASE via Elsevier, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI), and Korean databases including Regional Information Sharing Systems (RISS), National Digital Science Library (NDSL), and Oriental Medicine Advanced Searching Integrated System (OASIS). Additionally, prospective randomized controlled trials that evaluate the effectiveness of herbal medicines on immune function in patients with cancer will be included in this review. All outcomes related to the immune function of patients with cancer (e.g., CD3, CD4, CD8, CD4/CD8 ratio, CD19 (B cells), dendritic cells (CD11), CD56 (NK cells), and macrophages) will be included in this review. Results: This review is expected to provide data on the effectiveness of herbal medicines on improving immune functions in patients with cancers. Conclusion: This systematic review will help patients and clinicians establish new management options for cancer treatment.

• Journal of Physiology & Pathology in Korean Medicine
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• v.25 no.6
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• pp.1061-1068
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• 2011

Moxibustion is a treatment method for cold and pain in Korean medicine. But the systematic study of moxibustion were very few. This study was aimed to survey and evaluate moxibustion study in Korean medicine. We search the moxibustion study in journals related Korean medicine and http://oasis.kiom.re.kr. The period of the study from first issue to August, 2010. The search word were moxibustion, moxa in keyword and moxibustion treatment in title. We totally search 334 articles. But 175 articles were excluded because this study were not exactly moxibustion study, so we included and analyzed 159 articles. The study of moxibustion were 159 articles. Literature review were 35 articles, systematic review 8, heat experiment 10, in vivo or vitro 28 and survey investigation 3. Clinical articles of moxibustion related to Korean medical journals were 76. Before and after study were 31 articles, case report 20, cohort study 7, cross-sectional study 2, nonrandomized study 6, quasi randomized study 1, randomized clinical trials 9. This results showed that moxibustion study were smaller than acupuncture or herb and concentrated to pain and cold syndrome. We need further larger and diverse study of moxibustion.

• Horticultural Science & Technology
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• v.30 no.1
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• pp.34-41
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• 2012

The study was conducted in a glasshouse to examine the possibility of producing paprika plug seedlings in a newly developed inert phenolic foam growing medium. Plug seedlings of 'Fascinato' paprika were grown in five media, Grodan rockwool (Grodan Co. Ltd., Denmark), UR rockwool (UR Co. Ltd., Korea), phenolic foam LC (Smithers Oasis Korea Co. Ltd., Korea), phenolic foam RC, and phenolic foam 3813-4 all in a pellet type. Seeds were germinated in a growth chamber ($25^{\circ}C$, 90% RH, dark) for 4-5 days and then seedlings were grown in a glasshouse with nutrient solution supplied by an overhead irrigation system. Seedling growths were measured 20 days after sowing. The medium pH was the highest in the Grodan rockwool, and medium EC was the highest in phenolic foam 3813-4, although no nutritional excess disorders were observed. Germination rates of paprika were higher than 90% in all the media. Plant height, stem diameter, T/R ratio, leaf area, and chlorophyll showed a similar to those in the rockwool medium. Number of leaves, length of the longest root and dry weights of shoot were not significantly different among treatments. Overall, phenolic foam LC and RC produced seedlings with a similar growth as the rockwool medium. The results obtained suggest that rockwool can be replaced with a new material such as phenolic foam in the commercial scale production of plug seedlings of 'Fascinato' paprika.

• Journal of Korean Medicine for Obesity Research
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• v.13 no.2
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• pp.58-65
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• 2013

Objectives: The objective of this study was to analyse the methods being used to control food intake and physical activity in RCTs of human obesity. Methods: A total of 21 randomized controlled trials (RCTs) were investigated. Nine of which were domestic studies from "http://oasis.kiom.re.kr" and the other of which were foreign studies from systematic reviews of RCTs on herbal medicine for treatment of human obesity. Results: According to domestic studies, "low calorie diet" were recommended in five cases of the domestic studies, "maintain current dietary habit" were recommended in two and no information on diet was two. Considering the seven cases where the information on diet was available, patients' food intake were checked at every visit in six cases. Only two cases among the six had been dropped owing to the violation of dietary habit by patients. Exercises were prohibited in two cases, "maintain current level of phisical activity" were recommended in three cases and, from the rest, no information was available. The level of physical activity were not strictly controlled by any means hence no drop out. According to foreign studies, "low calorie diet" were recommended in two cases, "very low calorie diet (less than 700 kcal/day)" in one case, "maintain current dietary habit" in two cases, "do not eat fat" in two cases and no information was available in the rest five cases. Exercises which concerns spending about 300 kcal/day was recommended in one case, "moderate exercise" were recommended in three cases, "maintain current level of physical activity" were recommended in three cases and no information available in the rest five cases. Conclusions: In order to improve the accuracy of RCT, for the dietary side, researchers should record patient food intake at every visit by means of 24-hour dietary recall methods. This can be supplemented by multiple choice survey that are designed to help patients to diagnose themselves more accurately leading to less bias. For the exercise side, it is highly recommended to confine the exercises to walking only so as to quantify the amount of physical activity more easily by using pedometer.

• Journal of Acupuncture Research
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• v.28 no.6
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• pp.1-17
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• 2011

Objectives : This study aimed to review randomized controlled trials of acupuncture performed in South Korea that used sham acupuncture as a control group. Methods : The following databases were searched through the end of September 2011: Koreanstudies information service system (KISS), Korean medical database (KMbase), national discovery OR science leaders (NDSL), oriental medicine advance searching integrated system (OASIS), and research information service system (RISS). The following search terms were used: acupuncture AND (sham or placebo). The reference lists of searched articles and Korea institute of oriental medicine (KIOM) reports(2005~2009) were identified. The following data were extracted: year/first author, disease, number of participants, blinding, intervention, outcome, and result. Where appropriate, we performed meta-analysis. The methodological quality was assessed according to the Jadad scale and 'risk of bias' by Cochrane Handbook procedure. Results : Twenty-nine studies were included in this review. In eighteen studies, penetrating sham controls were used as the control intervention, whereas the remaining eleven studies adopted non-penetrating sham controls such as the Park Sham Device or blunt auricular acupuncture. Nine studies showed statistically significant difference in outcomes. Twelve studies concerning insomnia after stroke, chronic tension-type headache, idiopathic Parkinson's disease, Hwa-Byung, and smoking cessation were included in meta-analysis. A meta-analysis of insomnia after stroke only found significant difference(MD -4.31, 95% Cl -6.19 to -2.42, $p$<0.00001). In general, all of the studies showed low methodological quality(Jadad score: mean 2.1). Risk of bias by Cochrane Handbook procedure varied. Conclusions : The results of this study could not suggest conclusive evidence that acupuncture is more effective than sham acupuncture in several diseases. In the future, more studies with rigorous acupuncture trials using sham controls should be conducted.

• Journal of Physiology & Pathology in Korean Medicine
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• v.31 no.2
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• pp.118-125
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• 2017

The purpose of this study is to investigate the blood pressure reducing effect of Qi-Ju-Di-Huang-Wan (QJDHW) in adults with essential hypertension by using methods of systemic review and meta-analysis. Major search engines, such as PubMed, EMBASE, Cochrane library, Web of Science, CNKI, CiNii, J-STAGE, KISS, NDSL, RISS, OASIS, DBpia and so on, were used. The search period we used is from the start date of the search engine to October 30, 2016 and no language limits were placed. Randomized controlled trials using QJDHW in adults with essential hypertension were searched and extracted by two independent researchers. Meta-analysis was performed on outcome variables of the total effective rate (TER), systolic blood pressure (SBP) and diastolic blood pressure (DBP). Risk of bias (RoB) of Cochrane was used to assess methodological quality. Thirteen studies were finally selected. We observed that the combined treatment of QJDHW and antihypertensive drug had 3.6 times the odds ratio of TER for blood pressure lowering than a single use of an antihypertensive drug. Additionally, mean differences of SBP and DBP were -8.88 mmHg (95% Confidential Interval (CI) -12.77 mmHg, -5.00 mmHg, P<0.00001), -7.09 mmHg (95% CI -9.93, -4.25, P <0.00001), respectively. Single use of QJDHW did not reduce blood pressure more than an antihypertensive drug. All items of RoB were unclear and the methodological quality was low. Our analysis suggests that the combination of QJDHW and antihypertensive drugs may be more effective in reducing blood pressure than a single antihypertensive drug. But due to low methodological quality, careful interpretation will be needed and systematic long-term clinical trials will be required.

• Herbal Formula Science
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• v.26 no.1
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• pp.81-102
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• 2018

Objectives : I analysed daehwangmokdan-tang's compatibility principle by the system of chief, deputy, assistant, and envoy and investigated pharmacological activities by categorizing with chemical components, molecular level, cellular level, animal level and human level based on Korean and Chinese studies for this formula. Methods : Daehwangmokdan-tang's compatibiltity principle was examined by the system of chief, deputy, assistant, and envoy. I looked into studies that presented in Korea from 1956 to 2016 about daehwangmokdan-tang through KOREA INSTITUTE OF ORIENTAL MEDICINE, Korean medicine information system (OASIS) and in Chinese for 20 years about daehwangmokdan-tang through China National Knowledge Infrastructure, CNKI. Then classify into chemical components, molecular level, cellular level, animal level and human level to analyse. Results : According to the system of chief, deputy, assistant, and envoy, chief herb is Rhei Radix et Rhizoma and Moutan Cortex, deputy herb is Natrii Sulfas and Persicae Semen, assistant and envoy herbs are Trichosanthis Semen. The amount of extraction of paeonol, total anthraquinone, and conjugated anthraquinone from daehwangmokdan-tang with the formulation of the system of chief, deputy, assistant, and envoy was the highest, and in the formulation of chief herb and deputy herb, the extraction amount of paeonol and conjugated anthraquinone was the lowest. With other formulations, the amount of extraction of total anthraquinone and conjugated anthraquinone was improved, although the degree was different. In particular, when it is blended with Persicae Semen as a deputy herb, the extraction amount of total anthraquinone and conjugated anthraquinone of Rhei Radix et Rhizoma as a chief herb is greatly increased, and the extraction amount of paeonol is rather different, but it is lowered. It was found that the amount of Mg Ca K Na in daehwangmokdan-tang was the highest. Pharmacological activities can be detected in inflammatory mediators and enzymes for molecular level. For cellular level, it can be determined in lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-stimulated RAW 264.7 cell line. In mouse and rats for animal level and human level, in inflammatory diseases (acute appendicitis, acute pancreatitis, acute cholecystitis, acute abdominal disease, ect.), pharmacological activities was caught. Conclusions : From the above results, daehwangmokdan-tang is composed in line with the system of chief, deputy, assistant, and envoy, suggesting that there is certain rationality and scientific. Pharmacological activities of daehwangmokdan-tang are effective to anti-inflammation, improvement of sepsis, analgesic, muscle relaxation, and improvement of intestinal flora and its metabolites. Daehwangmokdan-tang is consistent with the action of diuresis and anti-inflammation in terms of the content of elements, suggesting that there is action of purging fire and removing blood stasis, defecation detoxification, cooling blood and clearing heat and activating blood and dispersing stasis.

• Journal of Society of Preventive Korean Medicine
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• v.19 no.3
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• pp.115-129
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• 2015

Objective : This study aims to review clinical studies evaluating effectiveness of Korean medicine for smoking cessation. It also aims to critically analyze study design of the studies and suggest strategies for future clinical studies on smoking cessation. Method : Only domestic databases such as RISS, KISS, DBPIA, NDSL, and OASIS were searched from August to November 2011 for clinical studies on smoking cessation. There was no limitation on study design, period, and language. The studies were qualitatively analyzed focusing on study design including participants, intervention, and outcome measurements. Results : Out of 537 studies searched, 27 studies were included in the analysis. 56% of the studies were observational studies, 33% were quasi-experimental studies, and 11% were randomized controlled studies. 44% and 32% of the studies were conducted at educational institutions and hospitals, respectively. The average number of the participants were 182, which ranged from 15 to 1,056. Most of the participants were male. Intervention used were mostly auricular acupuncture, and the most frequently used acupoints were Lung, Shinmun, Endocrine, Pharynx & Larynx, and Inner nose. The average length of treatment period was four weeks, and the treatment was provided twice per week. The outcomes were measured at the end of the treatment and only 26% of the studies conducted follow-up measurements. 26% of the studies utilized questionnaires of which validity was evaluated and only 15% used objective measurements such as exhaled Carbon monoxide and Cotinine test. Conclusion : Though many clinical studies on effectiveness of Korean medicine for smoking cessation were conducted, there are still debates on quality of evidence. Recently, guidelines have been developed for clinical trials evaluating effectiveness of smoking cessation program. Thus, in the future, clinical studies should be developed based on these guidelines and designed to improve validity and reliability.

• The Journal of Internal Korean Medicine
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• v.39 no.4
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• pp.662-675
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• 2018

Objective: The aim of this study was to establish the developmental history of hospice palliative care (HPC) with Korean medicine (KM). Methods: We compared the developmental history of HPC in Korea with that of Britain, the United States, Taiwan, Japan, and China. The articles in English or Korean published until Feb. 2017 were searched using 'Hospice' or 'Palliative care' with the name of each nation in the PubMed, MEDLINE, ScienceDirect, and CINAHL (Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature) databases for foreign articles and OASIS (Oriental Medicine Advanced Searching Integrated System) for domestic articles. Books and gray literature were searched on the same databases and websites of the Ministry of Health and Welfare and related organizations in each country. Results: Modern palliative care began with the hospice movement led by Dr. Cicely Saunders. HPC in Korea started earlier than in other countries but it took considerable time for social consensus, so Korean policies have only been published recently. In this process, KM was excluded from HPC. For this reason, western medicine in Korea does not fully accept the spirit of HPC, the government does not take an aggressive stance with KM, and the institutes of KM do not have any interest in HPC. The World Health Organization recommends the establishment of policies and programs connected with a country's own health care system. In 2015, the Korean government made the third comprehensive plan for the development of KM. It included critical pathway guidelines about cancer-related fatigue and anorexia. More effort is required to set up HPC than other care types because Korea has two medical systems. Conclusions: Each nation has been trying to improve systems of HPC. We need to overcome the problems and bring out the best by making our own model of HPC with KM.

• Journal of Society of Preventive Korean Medicine
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• v.24 no.1
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• pp.1-14
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• 2020

Objectives : The purpose of this systematic review was to investigate the efficacy and safety of Sanjoin-tang (Suanzaoren decoction, SZRD) for insomnia in menopausal syndromes. Method : We searched the following databases: PubMed, Cochrane Library, EMBASE, China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI), Chinese Science and Technique Journals Database (VIP), Wanfang, Research Information Service System (RISS), OASIS, Korean studies Information Service System (KISS), and National Digital Science Library (NDSL) databases. Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) or quasi-RCTs that used SZRD for women in menopause were included. The methodological quality of each RCT was assessed using the risk of bias tool. Results : In total, nine RCTs were finally included. The included RCTs had a high risk of bias across their domains. Three RCTs examined the effects of SZRD compared with western medicine (WM) in insomnia. Three RCTs showed favorable effects of SZRD with insomnia. Infrastructure also showed that SZRD resulted in better clinical WM (RR 1.19, 95% CI 1.07 to 1.32, P=0.001, I²=0%). Four RCTs showed favorable effects of Modified SZRD with insomnia. Infrastructure also showed that Modified SZRD resulted in better clinical WM (RR 1.13, 95% CI 1.04 to 1.23, P=0.004, I²=0%). Among the 4 RCTs, three RCTs showed an equivalent effect on the total Pittsburh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI). The meta-analysis also showed that Modified SZRD had a superior effect on the total of PSQI (total of PSQI : MD -2.55, 95% CI -3.72 to -1.37, P<0.0001, I²=85%). Only 2 trials reported adverse events and none reported severe adverse events. Conclusion : SZRD appears to be safe, but there is insufficient evidence to make a definitive conclusion because only a few studies reported adverse events. Due to the poor methodological quality of the included studies and the small number of trials included, the evidence cannot be reproduced and assessed. Well-designed RCTs with a larger sample size are needed in the future.