Effects of Gyejibongnyeong-hwan on dysmenorrhea caused by blood stagnation: study protocol for a randomized controlled trial

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Gyejibongnyeong-hwan (GJBNH) is one of the most popular Korean medicine formulas for menstrual pain of dysmenorrhea. The concept of blood stagnation in Korean medicine is considered the main factor of causing abdominal pain, or cramps, during menstrual periods. To treat the symptoms, GJBNH is used to fluidify the stagnated blood and induce the blood flow to be smooth, reducing pain as the result. The purpose of this trial is to identify the efficacy of GJBNH in dysmenorrhea caused by blood stagnation.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>This study is a multi-centre, randomised, double-blind, controlled trial with two parallel arms: the group taking GJBNH and the group taking placebo. 100 patients (women from age 18 to 35) will be enrolled to the trial. Through randomization 50 patients will be in experiment arm, and the other 50 patients will be in control arm. At the second visit (baseline), all participants who were already screened that they fulfil both the inclusion and the exclusion criteria will be randomised into two groups. Each group will take the intervention three times per day during two menstrual cycles. After the treatment for two cycles, each patient will be followed up during their 3^rd, 4^thand 5^thmenstrual cycles. From the screening (Visit 1) through the second follow-up (Visit 6) the entire process will take 25 weeks.</p> <p>Discussion</p> <p>This trial will provide evidence for the effectiveness of GJBNH in treating periodical pain due to dysmenorrhea that is caused by blood stagnation. The primary outcome between the two groups will be measured by changes in the Visual Analogue Score (VAS) of pain. The secondary outcome will be measured by the Blood Stagnation Scale, the Short-form McGill questionnaire and the COX menstrual symptom scale. Analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) and repeated measured ANOVA will be used to analyze the data analysis.</p> <p>Trial registration</p> <p>Current Controlled Trials: <a href="http://www.controlled-trials.com/ISRCTN30426947">ISRCTN30426947</a></p

Sprouted Innervation into Uterine Transplants Contributes to the Development of Hyperalgesia in a Rat Model of Endometriosis

Endometriosis is an enigmatic painful disorder whose pain symptoms remain difficult to alleviate in large part because the disorder is defined by extrauteral endometrial growths whose contribution to pain is poorly understood. A rat model (ENDO) involves autotransplanting on abdominal arteries uterine segments that grow into vascularized cysts that become innervated with sensory and sympathetic fibers. ENDO rats exhibit vaginal hyperalgesia. We used behavioral, physiological, and immunohistochemical methods to test the hypothesis that cyst innervation contributes to the development of this hyperalgesia after transplant. Rudimentary sensory and sympathetic innervation appeared in the cysts at two weeks, sprouted further and more densely into the cyst wall by four weeks, and matured by six weeks post-transplant. Sensory fibers became abnormally functionally active between two and three weeks post-transplant, remaining active thereafter. Vaginal hyperalgesia became significant between four and five weeks post-transplant, and stabilized after six to eight weeks. Removing cysts before they acquired functional innervation prevented vaginal hyperalgesia from developing, whereas sham cyst removal did not. Thus, abnormally-active innervation of ectopic growths occurs before hyperalgesia develops, supporting the hypothesis. These findings suggest that painful endometriosis can be classified as a mixed inflammatory/neuropathic pain condition, which opens new avenues for pain relief. The findings also have implications beyond endometriosis by suggesting that functionality of any transplanted tissue can be influenced by the innervation it acquires

Comprehensive studies on third phase behavior during solvent extraction of U(vi)/Th(iv) mixtures

International audienceThe third phase formation during liquid/liquid extraction has been studied for decades byseveral authors[1-3] starting in the 50’s. Those studies were focused on the determination of themaximum organic loading that can be reached for a metal in order to avoid phase splitting during theindustrial applications like the PUREX process. More recent studies were driven using a physicalapproach[4-5] to propose models accounting for phase segregation phenomenon. A new interest onthird phase studies appeared in the early 2000’s with the investigations released for the Th-cycle [6-8].Most of the models and results rely on SANS/SAXS or FTIR data acquired on metal-free or singlemetalsystems, and concentrations were often determined through analysis.Despite the huge amount of data concerning LOC (Limiting Organic Concentration) ofactinides (IV) for different phosphate based solvent, a lack of data remains in the literature for U(VI)alone and in the presence of Th(IV) or Pu(IV) for TBP/dodecane solvent. Besides, there are few valuesconcerning the composition of both heavy and light organic phases after splitting, and whenavailable, the data covers only a thin range of the 3rd phase existence.Therefore, we have determined LOC value for U(VI)/HNO3/TBP/dodecane system at differentHNO3 and TBP concentrations which have not been yet reported in the literature. In addition tothese, the behavior of U(VI) and Th(IV) after phase segregation and the composition of each phase wascharacterized using X ray fluorescence spectroscopy (XFS), allowing metal and TBP direct titration inorganic medium for the first time ever according to our knowledge. Nitric acid and water contentswere also estimated using acid/base and Karl Fischer titration respectively. Trends were establishedfor U(VI) and Th(IV) independently in the third phase, thus a better understanding of demixing behaviorof bimetallic U(VI)/Th(IV) systems was achieved.A parallel has also been drawn by studying transition metals behavior in HCl/TBP/dodecanesystems (analyzed by XFS and ICP-OES) in order to determine contributions of metal and acid tophase segregation phenomena. Moreover, we showed that LOC values can vary considerably from ametal to another even when working in the same conditions of extraction; we are currentlyinvestigating molecular species that may be involved in phase splitting

Self-monitoring of blood glucose in France: data from a national survey

International audienceTo describe Self-Monitoring of Blood Glucose (SMBG) practices in France in patients with type 1 (T1DM) or type 2 (T2DM) diabetes, by estimating the proportion of patients performing SMBG at the recommended testing frequency and the proportion of patients complying with the current quality control guidelines on SMBG

Diabète et Ramadan : représentations et pratiques de santé des patients et des soignants et intérêts de l'éducation thérapeutique du patient

peer reviewe

Real-time continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) integrated into the treatment of type 1 diabetes: consensus of experts from SFD, EVADIAC and SFE.

International audienc