Anxiety is a common comorbidity associated with chronic pain, which results in chronic pain complexification and difficulty in treatment. Electroacupuncture (EA) is commonly used to treat chronic pain and anxiety. However, the underlying mechanisms of the EA effect are largely unknown. Here, we showed that a circuitry underlying chronic pain induces anxiety disorders, and EA can treat them by regulating such circuitry. Using chemogenetic methods, we found that chemogenetic activation of the rostral anterior cingulate cortex (rACC) glutamatergic output to the thalamus induced anxiety disorders in control rats. Then, chemogenetic inhibition of the rACC-thalamus circuitry reduced anxiety-like behavior produced by intraplantar injection of the complete Freund’s adjuvant (CFA). In this study, we examined the effects of EA on a rat model of CFA-mediated anxiety-like behaviors and the related mechanisms. We found that chemogenetic activation of the rACC-thalamus circuitry effectively blocked the effects of EA on chronic pain-induced anxiety-like behaviors in CFA rats. These results demonstrate an underlying rACC-thalamus glutamatergic circuitry that regulates CFA-mediated anxiety-like behaviors. This study also provides a potential mechanistic explanation for EA treatment of anxiety caused by chronic pain.

Our previous studies have confirmed that electroacupuncture (EA) can effectively intervene in pain memory, but the neural mechanism involved remains unclear. In this study, we observed the effects of EA in regulating pain memory-related behaviors and synchronous neural oscillations in the rostral anterior cingulate cortex (rACC). During nociceptive behavioral testing, pain memory induced a nonpain stimulus that spurred a neural oscillatory reaction similar to that caused by pain stimuli in the rACC. After EA, nonpain stimuli did not induce decreased neural oscillatory activity in the rACC until the presentation of pain stimuli. During aversive behavioral testing, EA, through the downregulation of theta power, inhibited the retrieval of aversive memory and relieved pain memory-induced aversive behaviors. These changes of oscillatory activity may be the hallmarks of EA therapy for pain memory.

Background: Under the background of the increasing aging population and cancer burden in China, the role of hospice care has become increasingly prominent. The government has paid more attention to the development of hospice care and set up pilot hospitals to promote hospice care. Moreover, healthcare providers play a leading role in hospice care services. To improve the quality of hospice care, the National Health Commission of the People's Republic of China proposed to set up hospice care training bases in municipal or above-level hospitals with hospice care or relevant work foundations, and train healthcare providers on hospice care. This study aimed to investigate the current situation of cognition and attitudes about hospice care among healthcare providers and provide a theoretical basis for hospital training. Methods: We used a quantitative design. A questionnaire survey was conducted among 1591 healthcare providers from August 2022 to November 2022. SPSS 22.0 software was used to analyze the data. Results: As a significant way of continuing education for healthcare providers, hospital training hasn't been effectively exploited in hospice care education. The average score of hospice care knowledge among participants was (7.74±2.242) and the average score of hospice care attitudes among participants was (4.55±1.503). According to multivariate linear regression analysis, sex (P<0.001), education levels (P<0.001), and professional titles (P=0.002) of participants had significant difference on the score of hospice care knowledge; education levels (P=0.046) and professional titles (P=0.020) of participants had significant difference on the score of hospice care attitudes. Conclusions: There were some misunderstandings about hospice care among healthcare providers and their attitudes toward hospice care were inactive. It's suggested that hospitals should carry out professional and systematic education courses to help healthcare providers understand hospice care correctly, and participate in hospice care services actively.