BACKGROUND: The purpose of this systematic review was to evaluate the effectiveness of pharmacopuncture treatment for lumbar herniated intervertebral disc (LHIVD).
METHODS: Databases including Korean and Chinese ones were searched to identify all randomized controlled trials (RCTs) that evaluated the effect of pharmacopuncture on LHIVD. Outcome measurements included pain scale and functional index of the lower back and lower limb. The risk of bias of studies was assessed using Cochrane\'s Risk of Bias tool, and a meta-analysis was conducted.
RESULTS: Sixteen studies were included in the systematic review, and the quality assessment showed equivocal results. The meta-analysis revealed that pharmacopuncture has a significant effect on pain relief and functional status compared to the control intervention.

OBJECTIVE: Pharmacopuncture is one of the widely used interventions for stroke in Korea, but there is a lack of such evidence. This study was aimed to summarize the currently available evidence on the use of pharmacopuncture for stroke in the clinical practice of Korean medicine.
METHODS: A systematic review of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) to evaluate the efficacy and safety of pharmacopuncture for stroke in Korea was conducted.
RESULTS: Pharmacopuncture using bee venom was significantly beneficial for improving motor function and relieving the post-stroke shoulder pain. No serious adverse events were reported. The overall risk of bias of the included studies indicated a certain degree of concern and the level of evidence was low.
CONCLUSIONS: The majority of RCTs have focused on the pain relief effects of bee venom injection. However, the quantity and quality of the evidence are not sufficiently high to draw definitive conclusions on this topic.

UNASSIGNED: Our review aimed to summarize and evaluate evidence on the effectiveness of bee venom acupuncture (BVA) in the treatment of shoulder pain.
UNASSIGNED: Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) evaluating the effectiveness of BVA on shoulder pain were searched up to October 2019 in 11 electronic databases (Medline, Embase, CENTRAL, CiNii, CNKI, VIP, Wanfang, Kmbase, NDSL, RISS, OASIS). The methodological quality of the included RCTs were evaluated using Cochrane Risk of Bias tool and a meta-analysis was performed.
UNASSIGNED: Seven studies were included in the review, and four studies were included in the meta-analysis. Comparing BVA plus conventional therapy (CT) with saline injection plus CT, it showed an effect in favor of BVA plus CT in visual analog scale (VAS) and pain rating scale (PRS) (p = 0.02, p = 0.009, respectively). Comparing BVA plus physiotherapy (PT) with saline injection plus PT, it showed that there was no significant difference in VAS and verbal rating scale (VRS) between the two groups.
UNASSIGNED: This systematic review and meta-analysis suggest that BVA could be beneficial as an adjuvant treatment for shoulder pain.

OBJECTIVE: The main purpose of this research is to investigate the effect of treatment with Hominis Placental pharmacopuncture (HPP) for 32 patients with hemifacial spasm.
METHODS: We treated facial spasm patients with acupuncture and HPP at Sabaek (ST2), Seung-eup (ST1), Gwallyeo (SI18), Chanjuk (BL2), Sajukgong (TE23), Hagwan (ST7), Hyeopgeo (ST6), Jichang (ST4), Wan-gol (SI4) and Yepung (TE17), and we investigated the effect by using Scott\'s scale. The data were analyzed by using the SPSS/10.0 for windows program with descriptive statistics, the paired t-test, and the Shapiro-Wilk normality test.
RESULTS: After treatment, the grade of the spasm\'s intensity based on Scott\'s description were decreased significantly. About 72% of the patients felt that the combination treatment had produced excellent results.
CONCLUSIONS: These data suggested that HPP can be useful for treating facial spasm patients.

OBJECTIVE: The endpoint of this review is to investigate existing studies of Cervi cornu parvum(CCP) pharmacopuncture within Korean medicine journals in order to present a better research method in the future.
METHODS: We searched all the papers through six Korean electrical databases that included the title of \" Cervi cornu parvum pharmacopuncture\" or \" Cervi cornu parvum aqua-acupuncture\". Articles that had been published until December 2012 were largely divided into experimental studies and clinical studies.
RESULTS: Fifty-three (53) experimental studies and six clinical studies were found. The number of published articles has been constantly increasing. Many of the experimental studies demonstrated anti-inflammatory effects for arthritis, and most of the clinical studies dealt with musculoskeletal problems.
CONCLUSIONS: Various therapeutically significant effects of the CCP pharmacopuncture have been found through this review; however, more systematic clinical studies on the CCP pharmacopuncture seem to be necessary to substantially support its clinical effects.

OBJECTIVE: Pharmacopuncture, a new therapy in traditional medicine, has attracted significant attention since its introduction to the Western world. This short review article employs a database analysis to examine the profile of publication activity related to pharmacopuncture.
METHODS: Three databases were searched: PubMed, Embase, and Cochrane. About 300 papers related to the topic \"pharmacopuncture\" were found in these three most-commonly-used databases.
RESULTS: Fourteen papers are described in detail and are discussed in the context of the research performed at the Medical University of Graz, especially by the Frank Bahr Research Group \"Auriculomedicine and Pharmacopuncture.\"
CONCLUSIONS: High-tech research methods concerning future pharmacopuncture studies are briefly discussed.