Abstract. Numerous randomized controlled trials (RCTs) of acupuncture have been conducted in recent years. The results of several studies implied that acupuncture was only a powerful placebo; however, certain studies demonstrated that verum acupuncture had a greater effect than placebo and the mechanisms between a verum acupuncture group and a placebo/sham group were different. Researchers attempted to investigate the inherent factors that may potentially influence the results of trials. Certain problems observed in acupuncture RCTs also occurred in RCTs in other fields, including insufficient sample size, high dropout rates, inadequate follow-up and randomization. The study of acupuncture is so complex that specific methodological challenges are raised, which are frequently overlooked, including sham interventions, blinding, powerful placebo effects (even stronger than an inert pill) and variations in acupuncture administration. The aforementioned problems may contribute to bias, and researchers systematically attempt to solve these problems. The present review aimed to suggest techniques to design high-quality studies, minimize the placebo effect and optimize acupuncture administration in acupuncture studies. If these problems are addressed, then the results of acupuncture studies may be different.

Pain is a kind of complex physiological and psychological symptom, which makes the person debilitated and uncomfortable. Some persistent pain is unbearable for the patients, reducing the quality of life and bringing considerable pressure to the individuals and society. Pain killers seem to be effective in analgesia for patients, but their safety and addiction are crucial issues. From the theory of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), the blocked meridian is the main cause of pain, and effective acupuncture can play a positive analgesic effect. Acupuncture that can date back thousands of years is one of the ancient medical practices in China. Its safety and effectiveness are respected. Based on its superior safety and inferior side effects, it has been gradually recognized as a therapeutic intervention method for complementary medicine, which is also generally used to treat multiple pain diseases. It is shown by modern medical studies that neurotransmitters are the material basis for the acupuncture effect, and the effect of acupuncture analgesia is related to changes in neurotransmitters. However, the specific mechanism has not been elucidated. This review aims to comprehensively discuss the historical evolution of acupuncture analgesia, clinical research of acupuncture analgesia, comparison of acupuncture and drug therapy, the neurotransmitter mechanism of acupuncture analgesia, the effect of acupuncture manipulation on analgesia, and bibliometric analysis of acupuncture treatment for pain, to explore the superiority and related mechanism of acupuncture analgesia from different aspects, and to provide a more effective treatment for alleviating patients’ pain.

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Stroke-induced depression is a common complication and an important risk factor for disability. Besides psychiatric symptoms, depressed patients may also exhibit a variety of gastrointestinal symptoms, and even take gastrointestinal symptoms as the primary reason for medical treatment. It is well documented that stress may disrupt the balance of the gut microbiome in patients suffering from post-stroke depression (PSD), and that disruption of the gut microbiome is closely related to the severity of the condition in depressed patients. Therefore, maintaining the balance of intestinal microbiota can be the focus of research on the mechanism of acupuncture in the treatment of PSD. Furthermore, stroke can be effectively treated with acupuncture at all stages and it may act as a special microecological regulator by regulating intestinal microbiota as well. In this article, we reviewed the studies on changing intestinal microbiota after acupuncture treatment and examined the existing problems and development prospects of acupuncture, microbiome, and poststroke depression, in order to provide new ideas for future acupuncture research.

Objective: Moxibustion has been widely used in the prevention and treatment of COVID-19. However, there is no systematic review of current topics and clinical findings on moxibustion for COVID-19. We conducted this scoping review to systematically summarize and analyze the themes and findings of published articles, and to provide an overview of current knowledge and practice of moxibustion for COVID-19.Methods: PubMed, Embase, Cochrane Library, Web of Science, China National Knowledge Infrastructure, SinoMed, Wan Fang Data, and VIP databases were searched from inception until April 2022. The relevant data were presented through bar graphs, structured tables, and figures along with descriptive statistics and analysis. This scoping review was conducted based on the PRISMA-ScR Checklist.Results: A total of 76 articles were reviewed: 47 reviews, 19 clinical research studies, seven systematic reviews (all were protocols), and three guidelines. All the studies were conducted by Chinese researchers and published from January 1, 2020 to March 14, 2022. The feasibility of moxibustion in the prevention and treatment of mild or moderate COVID-19 is based on the consensus of therapeutic mechanisms and effectiveness. The most adopted approach was the suspended and gentle moxibustion, and the most frequently applied or recommended acupoints were found to be ST36,