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Transcultural Psychiatry Aug 2023As psychological resilience has been increasingly recognized as contextually constructed, mixed methods studies that map out local ecologies of resilience have become... (Review)
Review
As psychological resilience has been increasingly recognized as contextually constructed, mixed methods studies that map out local ecologies of resilience have become increasingly common. However, the direct adaptation of quantitative tools for cross-cultural use based on qualitative findings has been relatively lacking. The current review aims to provide an overview of existing measures of resilience used cross-culturally and to synthesize the protective and promotive factors and processes (PPFP) of resilience identified within these measures into a single resource. A January 2021 search of PubMed for studies of the development of psychological resilience measures that excluded studies of non-psychological resilience yielded 58 unique measures. These measures contain 54 unique PPFP of resilience, ranging from individual to communal-level characteristics. This review is intended to serve as a complementary tool for adapting standardized measures for stakeholders requiring an assessment tool that is attuned to their context for mental health risk assessment and intervention evaluation.
Topics: Humans; Protective Factors; Cross-Cultural Comparison; Resilience, Psychological
PubMed: 37097913
DOI: 10.1177/13634615231167661 -
Journal of Ethnopharmacology Jan 2022In the past five years, ethnopharmacy-based drugs have been increasingly used in clinical practice. It has been reported that hundreds of ethnopharmacy-based drugs can...
ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE
In the past five years, ethnopharmacy-based drugs have been increasingly used in clinical practice. It has been reported that hundreds of ethnopharmacy-based drugs can modulate autophagy to regulate physiological and pathological processes, and ethnomedicines also have certain therapeutic effects on illnesses, revealing the important roles of these medicines in regulating autophagy and treating diseases.
AIM OF THE STUDY
This study reviews the regulatory effects of natural products on autophagy in recent years, and discusses their pharmacological effects and clinical applications in the process of diseases. It provides a preliminary literature basis and reference for the research of plant drugs in the regulation of autophagy.
MATERIALS AND METHODS
A comprehensive systematic review in the fields of relationship between autophagy and ethnomedicine in treating diseases from PubMed electronic database was performed. Information was obtained from documentary sources.
RESULTS
We recorded some illnesses associated with autophagy, then classified them into different categories reasonably. Based on the uses of these substances in different researches of diseases, a total of 80 active ingredients or compound preparations of natural drugs were searched. The autophagy mechanisms of these substances in the treatments of divers diseases have been summarized for the first time, we also looked forward to the clinical application of some of them.
CONCLUSIONS
Autophagy plays a key function in lots of illnesses, the regulation of autophagy has become one of the important means to prevent and treat these diseases. About 80 compounds and preparations involved in this review have been proved to have therapeutic effects on related diseases through the mechanism of autophagy. Experiments in vivo and in vitro showed that these compounds and preparations could treat these diseases by regulating autophagy. The typical natural products curcumin and tripterine have powerful roles in regulating autophagy and show good and diversified curative effects.
Topics: Autophagy; Biological Products; Ethnopharmacology; Humans; Medicine, Traditional; Plants, Medicinal
PubMed: 34487846
DOI: 10.1016/j.jep.2021.114516 -
Sleep Health Jun 2023The United States (US) has more immigrants than any other country in the world, with an estimated 44 million non-US-born individuals residing in the country as of 2018.... (Review)
Review
The United States (US) has more immigrants than any other country in the world, with an estimated 44 million non-US-born individuals residing in the country as of 2018. Previous studies have linked US acculturation to both positive and negative health outcomes, including sleep. However, the relationship between US acculturation and sleep health is not well understood. This systematic review aims to identify and synthesize scientific studies on acculturation and sleep health among adult immigrants in the US. A systematic search of the literature was performed in PubMed, Ovid MEDLINE, and Web of Science in 2021 and 2022 with no date limiters. Quantitative studies published anytime in a peer-reviewed journal in English among an adult immigrant population with an explicit measure of acculturation and a sleep health dimension, sleep disorder, or daytime sleepiness measure were considered for inclusion. The initial literature search yielded 804 articles for review; after removing duplicates, applying inclusion and exclusion criteria, and searching reference lists, 38 total articles were included. We found consistent evidence that acculturative stress was associated with worse sleep quality/continuity, daytime sleepiness, and sleep disorders. However, we discovered limited consensus on the association of acculturation scales and acculturation proxy measures with sleep. Our review demonstrated that compared to US-born adult populations, there is a high prevalence of adverse sleep health among immigrant populations, and acculturation likely plays an important role in shaping this disparity, particularly through acculturative stress.
Topics: Humans; Adult; United States; Acculturation; Emigrants and Immigrants; Sleep; Disorders of Excessive Somnolence
PubMed: 36849283
DOI: 10.1016/j.sleh.2023.01.007 -
Alternative Therapies in Health and... Sep 2023Mammary gland hyperplasia is a common gynecological disease, which seriously affects the patient's physical and mental health. Therapeutic strategies to treat the... (Review)
Review
OBJECTIVE
Mammary gland hyperplasia is a common gynecological disease, which seriously affects the patient's physical and mental health. Therapeutic strategies to treat the disease include endocrine therapy and surgery. Compared to Western treatment, traditional Chinese medicine prescription shows its superiority in treatment. The purpose of this review was to provide a reference for the determination of the pathogenesis, treatment principles, and treatment methods of mammary gland hyperplasia.
METHOD
This article comprehensively reviewed the records on mammary gland hyperplasia in ancient Chinese medical literature.
RESULTS
The present review discussed the disease and summarizes the information on mammary gland hyperplasia, including the disease name, the traditional Chinese medicine analysis, etiology, pathogenesis, treatment methods, prognosis, and nursing care.
CONCLUSION
We clearly described the research history of mammary gland hyperplasia, and the analysis and treatment of this disease by physicians in past dynasties. This information will help modern physicians to fully understand the disease development and treatment process.
Topics: Humans; Hyperplasia; Mammary Glands, Human; Medicine, Chinese Traditional
PubMed: 37235489
DOI: No ID Found -
Clinical Psychology & Psychotherapy Sep 2022Mindfulness-based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT) is a relapse-prevention intervention for people experiencing major depression. Three qualitative meta-syntheses investigating... (Review)
Review
BACKGROUND
Mindfulness-based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT) is a relapse-prevention intervention for people experiencing major depression. Three qualitative meta-syntheses investigating experiences of taking part in MBCT and/or Mindfulness-based Stress Reduction (MBSR) across different diagnostic populations reported themes including control, choice, group processes, relationships and struggles. As multiple studies have been published since, we aimed to update, systematically review and synthesize the experiences of participants with depression taking part in MBCT.
METHODS
Four databases were searched systematically (PsycInfo, Web of Science, Medline and CINAHL) up to and including 12 November 2021. Twenty-one qualitative studies met the review criteria. All papers were rated as fair using a quality appraisal tool. Meta-ethnography was applied.
RESULTS
Across 21 studies of participants with current or previous depression who had participated in MBCT, three overarching themes were developed: 'Becoming skilled and taking action', 'Acceptance' and 'Ambivalence and Variability'. Participants became skilled through engagement in mindfulness practices, reporting increased awareness, perspective and agency over their experiences. Participants developed acceptance towards their experiences, self and others. There was variability and ambivalence regarding participants' expectations and difficulties within mindfulness practices.
LIMITATIONS
Many studies were conducted in MBCT-research centres that may hold conflicts of interest. Many studies did not address the impact of the participant-researcher relationship thus potentially affecting their interpretations. Studies were skewed towards the experiences of female participants.
CONCLUSIONS
Our findings help to enhance participant confidence in MBCT, alongside understanding the processes of change and the potential for difficulties. MBCT is beneficial and provides meaningful change for many but remains challenging for some.
Topics: Humans; Female; Mindfulness; Depressive Disorder, Major; Depression; Cognitive Behavioral Therapy; Anthropology, Cultural; Treatment Outcome
PubMed: 35912665
DOI: 10.1002/cpp.2773 -
Complementary Therapies in Clinical... May 2021To evaluate the safety and efficacy of acupoint autohemotherapy(AA). (Meta-Analysis)
Meta-Analysis Review
OBJECTIVE
To evaluate the safety and efficacy of acupoint autohemotherapy(AA).
METHODS
We collected Controlled Trials that are random of AA plus medicine of the west therapy vs western medicine therapy alone in treating COPD from PubMed, the Cochrane library, EMBASE, CNKI, CBM SinoMed, China Science, and Wanfang Data from database inception to July 1, 2019. Meta-analysis was performed using the RevMan 5.3.
RESULTS
This meta-analysis identified that the combined treatment could enhance the total effective clinical rate, the forced expiratory volume in 1 s(FEV1)and forced vital capacity(FVC),increase the 6-min walking distance,and improve the self-assessment of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease score(CAT).
CONCLUSION
The clinical effects of AA plus medicine of the west therapy are better than that of western medicine alone in treating COPD. However, due to the small number and poor quality of the included RCTs,this conclusion needs to be verified with larger samples and higher quality RCTs.
Topics: Acupuncture Points; China; Humans; Medicine, Chinese Traditional; Pulmonary Disease, Chronic Obstructive; Respiratory Function Tests
PubMed: 33756218
DOI: 10.1016/j.ctcp.2021.101336 -
Experimental Brain Research Dec 2021Previous research about body size estimation in obesity reported heterogeneous results. This might be related to the fact that the tasks adopted explored different body... (Meta-Analysis)
Meta-Analysis Review
Previous research about body size estimation in obesity reported heterogeneous results. This might be related to the fact that the tasks adopted explored different body representations. Classifying the previous studies according to the specific body representation probed (i.e. implicit, explicit or both) might clarify discordant findings. A systematic review and meta-analysis of research articles assessing body size estimation in individuals affected by obesity compared with healthy weight individuals were performed in PubMed and Web of Science. Additional records were identified by reference lists inspection. The last search was run in May 2021. Two independent authors performed data extraction according to predefined criteria. Both groups either overestimated or underestimated the implicit body representation depending on the task used and the body part considered. Conversely, the explicit representation of the body was mainly overestimated by both individuals with obesity and healthy weight. In tasks relying on both these representations, overestimation and underestimation were reported in both groups, possibly depending on the degree of which each procedure relied on the explicit and/or implicit representation of the body. According to the meta-analysis, individuals with obesity tended to be significantly less accurate in body size estimations than participants with healthy weight. We confirmed that heterogeneous findings in body size estimation in obesity are related to the adoption of different tasks, which likely involve different body representations. We discussed the role of body dissatisfaction and altered somatosensation in the lower accuracy observed in obesity.
Topics: Body Image; Body Size; Human Body; Humans; Obesity
PubMed: 34536083
DOI: 10.1007/s00221-021-06215-4 -
Phytotherapy Research : PTR Dec 2022Although plenty of clinical trials have confirmed the efficacy and safety of integrated traditional Chinese and Western medicine (ITCWM) against COVID-19, the role of... (Meta-Analysis)
Meta-Analysis Review
Although plenty of clinical trials have confirmed the efficacy and safety of integrated traditional Chinese and Western medicine (ITCWM) against COVID-19, the role of ITCWM remains controversial. So we conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis of published studies in eight major databases that report the outcomes of interest in COVID-19 patients receiving ITCWM. RevMan5.4 software was used for meta-analysis, while the quality of RCTs was assessed by the Cochrane risk of bias tool and the retrospective studies were assessed by Newcastle-Ottawa Scale. Eventually, a total of 53 studies with 5425 COVID-19 patients was identified. The meta-analysis results showed that ITCWM was significantly better than western medicine treatment (WMT) alone in the percentage of cases changing to severe/critical [RR = 0.40, 95%CI (0.33, 0.49), p < .00001, I = 10%], overall clinical effectiveness [RR = 1.26, 95% CI (1.18, 1.35), p < .00001, I = 50%], time to defervescencer [MD = -1.45, 95% CI (-1.82, -1.07), p < .00001, I = 83%], disappearing time of cough [MD = -2.11, 95% CI (-2.98, -1.25), p < .00001, I = 93%], time of RT-PCR negativity [MD = -3.35, 95% CI (-4.74, -1.95), p < .00001, I = 92%], length of hospital stay [MD = -4.05, 95% CI (-5.24, -2.85), p < .00001, I = 91%], improvement in CT scan [RR = 1.22, 95% CI (1.17, 1.28), p < .00001, I = 46%], TCM syndrome score [MD = -3.95, 95% CI (-5.07, -2.82), p < .00001, I = 92%], disappearance rate of fever [RR = 1.23, 95% CI (1.10, 1.38), p < .00001, I = 85%], disappearance rate of cough [RR = 1.43, 95% CI (1.25, 1.63), p < .00001, I = 60%], level of CRP [MD = -9.23, 95% CI (-10.94, -7.52), p < .00001, I = 97%], and WBC [MD = -9.23, 95% CI (-10.94, -7.52), p < .00001, I = 97%]. There is no significant difference between ITCWM and WMT in the adverse reaction rate [RR = 0.85, 95% CI(0.71, 1.03), p = .10, I = 25%]. Our results showed evidence of clinical efficacy and safety benefit in COVID-19 patients treated with ITCWM. In spite of some limitations, the rapidly developing global pandemic warrants further high-quality and multicenter clinical studies to confirm the contribution of ITCWM.
Topics: Humans; COVID-19; Medicine, Chinese Traditional; Multicenter Studies as Topic; Retrospective Studies
PubMed: 36256518
DOI: 10.1002/ptr.7643 -
Frontiers in Public Health 2021This study was aimed to find and appraise the available published pharmacoeconomic research on Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), to identify related issues and make...
This study was aimed to find and appraise the available published pharmacoeconomic research on Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), to identify related issues and make suggestions for improvement in future research. After developing a search strategy and establishing inclusion and exclusion criteria, pharmacoeconomic studies on TCM were sourced from seven Chinese and English databases from inception to April 2020. Basic information about the studies and key pharmacoeconomic items of each study were extracted. The quality of each study was evaluated by using the British Medical Journal economic submissions checklist for authors and peer reviewers, focusing on factors such as study design, research time horizon, sample size, perspective, and evaluation methods. A total of 431 published pharmacoeconomic articles with 434 studies on topics including cost-effectiveness, cost-benefit, cost-minimization, cost-utility, or combination analyses were identified and included in this review. Of these, 424 were published in Chinese and 7 in English. These studies conducted economic evaluations of 264 Chinese patent medicines and 70 types of TCM prescriptions for 143 diseases, including those of the central nervous, cardiovascular, respiratory, gynecologyical, and other systems. The studied TCMs included blood-activating agents (such as Xuesaitong tablet, Fufant Danshen tablet, and Danhong Injection), blood circulation promoting agents (such as Shuxuetong injection, Rupixiao tablet, and Fufang Danshen injection), and other therapeutic agents. The overall quality score of the studies was 0.62 (range 0.38 to 0.85). The mean quality score of studies in English was 0.72, which was higher than that of studies in Chinese with 0.62. The quality of pharmacoeconomic studies on TCM was relatively, generally low. Major concerns included study design, inappropriate pharmacoeconomic evaluation, insufficient sample size, or non-scientific assessment. Enhanced methodological training and cooperation, the development of a targeted pharmacoeconomic evaluation guideline, and proposal of a reasonable health outcome index are warranted to improve quality of future studies.
Topics: China; Economics, Medical; Economics, Pharmaceutical; Medicine, Chinese Traditional; Research Design
PubMed: 34414159
DOI: 10.3389/fpubh.2021.706366 -
Journal of Ethnopharmacology Apr 2023Pueraria Flos (PF), a traditional herbal medicine, is botanically from the dried flowers of Pueraria lobate (Willd.) Ohwi. (Chinese: ) or Pueraria thomsonii Benth.... (Review)
Review
ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE
Pueraria Flos (PF), a traditional herbal medicine, is botanically from the dried flowers of Pueraria lobate (Willd.) Ohwi. (Chinese: ) or Pueraria thomsonii Benth. (Chinese: ). It has a long history of thousands of years in China for awakening the spleen, clearing the lungs, relieving alcohol.
AIM OF THE REVIEW
This review aims to report the up-to-date research progress in ethnopharmacology, phytochemistry, pharmacology and toxicology, metabolism and therapeutic application of PF, so as to provide a strong basis for future clinical treatment and scientific research.
MATERIALS AND METHODS
Relevant information on PF was collected from scientific literature databases including PubMed, CNKI and other literature sources (Ph.D. and M.Sc. dissertations and Chinese herbal classic books) by using the keyword "Puerariae".
RESULTS
Briefly, phytochemical research report has isolated 39 flavonoids, 19 saponins and 25 volatile oils from PF. Flavonoids and saponins are the most important bioactive compounds, and most of the quality control studies focus on these two types of compounds. Modern pharmacological studies have revealed their significant biological activities in relieving alcoholism, hepatoprotective, anti-tumor, anti-inflammatory, and anti-oxidation, which provides theoretical support for the traditional use.
CONCLUSIONS
Comprehensive analysis showed that pharmacological activity of most purified compounds from PF had not been reported. Kakkalide, tectoridin and their deglycosylated metabolites (irisolidone and tectorigenin) has been focused on excessively due to their higher content and better activities. This leads to low development and resources waste. Interestingly, PF made a breakthrough in the field of food. Many kinds of fat-lowering foods such as PILLBOX Onaka have been popular in Japan market, which received extensive attention. Therefore, we suggest that future research can be paid attention on the development of the plant's function in the field of food and medicine, as well as the transformation from experimental to clinical.
Topics: Pueraria; Ethnopharmacology; Drugs, Chinese Herbal; Flavonoids; Flowers; Saponins; Phytochemicals; Medicine, Chinese Traditional
PubMed: 36621660
DOI: 10.1016/j.jep.2022.116089