Controlling Entanglement Dynamics by Choosing Appropriate Ratio between Cavity-Fiber Coupling and Atom-Cavity Coupling

The entanglement characteristics including the so-called sudden death effect between two identical two-level atoms trapped in two separate cavities connected by an optical fiber are studied. The results show that the time evolution of entanglement is sensitive not only to the degree of entanglement of the initial state but also to the ratio between cavity-fiber coupling () and atom-cavity coupling (). This means that the entanglement dynamics can be controlled by choosing specific v and g.Comment: 14pages, 3figures, conferenc

A Retrospective Cohort Study Comparing Stroke Recurrence Rate in Ischemic Stroke Patients With and Without Acupuncture Treatment.

Little was known about the effects of acupuncture on stroke recurrence. The aim of this study is to investigate whether ischemic stroke patients receiving acupuncture treatment have a decreased risk of stroke recurrence. A retrospective cohort study of 30,058 newly diagnosed cases of ischemic stroke in 2000 to 2004 was conducted based on the claims of Taiwan National Health Insurance Research Database. The use of acupuncture treatment and stroke recurrence were identified during the follow-up period from 2000 to 2009. This study compared the risk of stroke recurrence between ischemic stroke cohorts with and without acupuncture treatment by calculating adjusted hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) of acupuncture associated with stroke recurrence in the Cox proportional hazard model. The stroke recurrence rate per 1000 person-years decreased from 71.4 without to 69.9 with acupuncture treatment (P < 0.001). Acupuncture treatment was associated with reduced risk of stroke recurrence (HR 0.88; 95% CI 0.84-0.91). The acupuncture effect was noted in patients with or without medical treatment for stroke prevention but its impact decreased with aging of stroke patients. Compared with stroke patients without acupuncture treatment and medication therapy, the hazard ratios of stroke recurrence for those had medication therapy only, acupuncture only, and both were 0.42 (95% CI 0.38-0.46), 0.50 (95% CI 0.43-0.57), and 0.39 (95% CI 0.35-0.43), respectively. This study raises the possibility that acupuncture might be effective in lowering stroke recurrence rate even in those on medications for stroke prevention. Results suggest the need of prospective sham-controlled and randomized trials to establish the efficacy of acupuncture in preventing stroke

Clinical Evaluation of Acupuncture as Treatment for Complications of Cerebrovascular Accidents: A Randomized, Sham-Controlled, Subject- and Assessor-Blind Trial

Background and Purpose. The effect of acupuncture as treatment for poststroke complications is questionable. We performed a randomized, sham-controlled double-blind study to investigate it. Methods. Patients with first-time acute stroke were randomized to receive 24 sessions of either real or sham acupuncture during an eight-week period. The primary outcome measure was change in National Institute of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS) score. Secondary outcome measures included changes in Barthel Index (BI), Instrumental Activities of Daily Living (IADL), Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HAM-D), and Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) for pain scores. Results. Of the 52 patients who were randomized to receive acupuncture (n=28) or placebo (n=24), 10 patients in the acupuncture group and 9 patients in the placebo group failed to complete the treatment. In total, 18 patients in the acupuncture group and 15 patients in the control group completed the treatment course. Reduction in pain was significantly greater in the acupuncture group than in the control group (p value = 0.04). There were no significant differences in the other measures between the two groups. Conclusions. Acupuncture provided more effective poststroke pain relief than sham acupuncture treatment. However, acupuncture had no better effect on neurological, functional, and psychological improvement

Growth factor for therapeutic angiogenesis in ischemic heart disease: A meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials

Aim: This study was designed to systematically evaluate the effects of growth factor (GF) for therapeutic angiogenesis on ischemic heart disease (IHD) by pooling the results of randomized controlled trials (RCTs).Methods and Results: PubMed, EMBASE, and CENTRAL databases were searched from inception to October 2022. RCTs, investigating the effects of GF therapy on IHD, were included. The risk bias of included study was assessed according to Cochrane tool. Weighted mean difference (WMD), calculated with fixed effect model or random effect model, was used to evaluate the effects of GF therapy on left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) and Canadian Cardiovascular Society (CCS) angina class. Relative risk (RR) was used to evaluate the effects of GF therapy on all-cause mortality, major adverse cardiovascular events (MACE) and revascularization. Meta-analysis, meta-regression analysis and publication bias analysis were performed by RevMan 5.3 or Stata 15.1 software. Twenty-nine studies involving 2899 IHD patients (1,577 patients in GF group and 1,322 patients in control group) were included. Compared with the control group, GF therapy did not reduce all-cause mortality (RR: 0.82; 95% CI: 0.54–1.24; p = 0.341), MACE [(RR: 0.83; 95% CI: 0.61–1.12; p = 0.227), revascularization (RR: 1.27, 95% CI: 0.82–1.96, p = 0.290) and CCS angina class (WMD: −0.08, 95% CI: −0.36 to 0.20, p = 0.560). However, GF therapy could increase LVEF during short-term follow-up (<1 year).Conclusion: GF for therapeutic angiogenesis was beneficial for increasing LVEF during short-term follow-up (<1 year), however, the therapy was not efficacious in decreasing all-cause mortality, MACE and revascularization

An Investigation of the Use of Traditional Chinese Medicine in Stroke Patients in Taiwan

Background. The use of complementary and alternative medicine in critical illness is increasing worldwide. This study investigates how traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) is used in stroke patients. Methods. Using Taiwan National Health Insurance reimbursement claims, we compared the annual use of TCM between stroke patients and general population, identifying 15,330 patients with a new onset of stroke in 2000–2009. The sociodemographic status and medical comorbidities between stroke patients receiving TCM services and those without using the service were compared. Results. The use of TCM was higher in stroke patients than in the general population, 27.9% versus 25.4% in 2000 and 32.7% versus 27.8% in 2009, respectively, and grew consistently from 2000 to 2009. Among stroke patients, women, younger patients, white-collar employees, higher-income residents, and those living in areas with more TCM physicians were more likely to use TCM. Stroke patients using rehabilitation services were more likely to have more TCM visits (OR = 2.28, 95% CI = 1.96–2.66) and higher expenditure on TCM (OR = 2.67, 95% CI = 2.29–3.12) compared with stroke patients without rehabilitation. Conclusion. TCM is popular and well accepted in Taiwan. Patients with stroke have a higher TCM utilization rate than people without stroke