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This review examined recently published (July 2014 to June 2017), randomized controlled trials (RCTs) which investigated the safety and effectiveness of combined Korean medicine/complementary alternative medicine (CAM) and Western medicine, to indicate the direction for integrative medical practice. The Korean Medicine Convergence Research Information Center evidence-based medicine database (KMCRIC EBM DB) was used to retrieve relevant RCTs indexed in the last 3 years. Study design, country, sample size, disease/condition with the Korean Standard Classification of Diseases code, interventions, direction of outcomes, and adverse events were extracted and summarized. A total of 93 RCTs were included in this review. Acupuncture/moxibustion was the most commonly used intervention (n = 47; 51%), and 19% (n = 18) of the studies treated musculoskeletal disorders, followed by circulatory disorders (n = 16; 17%), and mental and behavioral disorders (n = 9; 10%). Integrative treatment was reported as more effective than monotherapy in approximately 83% of these studies. Adverse events were poorly reported in most studies. This review suggests that integrative treatments are feasible, effective, and safe for various diseases/conditions, based on the evidence from recently published RCTs. Future studies on integrative healthcare are warranted.

Dural ectasia is defined as ballooning or expansion of the dural sac surrounding the spinal cord. This report describes a rare case of low back pain and sciatica, suspected as being dural ectasia. The patient was hospitalized for 45 days, and underwent integrative Korean medical treatment, including pharmacopuncture, acupuncture, herbal medicine, Chuna therapy, cupping therapy, and physiotherapy. The effect of the treatment was evaluated using the numerical rating scale, Oswestry disability index, European quality of life 5 dimensions, and subjective symptoms. After inpatient treatment, the pain the patient experienced was significantly reduced and the evaluation indices improved. This case report suggested that integrative Korean medical treatment could be an effective therapeutic choice for low back pain and sciatica, with dural ectasia. Further clinical studies are needed to support this observation.

Background This study was designed to evaluate the clinical effectiveness of traditional Korean medicine treatment for lumbar spinal stenosis as assessed by radiological criteria. Methods This was an observational study of 122 patients who were diagnosed with lumbar spinal stenosis and admitted to Jaseng Hospital between January 2016 and June 2017. They were analyzed according to sex, age, cause of disease, disease stage, length of admission, type of stenosis, morphological grade, and dural sac cross-sectional area. All patients were treated with traditional Korean medicine. Patients were assessed with the Numeric Rating Scale (NRS), Oswestry Disability Index (ODI) and EQ-5D before and after treatment. Results Regarding the distribution of the factors analyzed, these were of note: more females than males (1:3.52); and highest proportions were age more than 70 years (37.70%), cause of lumbar spinal stenosis unknown (67.21%), and subacute stage (42.62%). Comparing before and after treatment, the NRS score for low back and pelvic pain decreased from 6.14 ± 1.71 to 4.28 ± 1.91 (p < 0.001), and the NRS score for radiating pain and numbness decreased from 6.27 ± 1.61 to 2.02 ± 1.54 (p < 0.001). ODI decreased from 46.86 ± 19.40 to 33.63 ± 18.66 (p < 0.001), and gait-related ODI decreased from 3.34 ± 1.23 to 2.80 ± 1.11 (p < 0.001). There were no statistically significant differences in improvement of the NRS, ODI, gait-related ODI, and EQ-5D for morphological grade and dural sac cross-sectional area. Conclusions Traditional Korean medicine is effective treatment for patients with lumbar spinal stenosis. Even in patients with severe radiological findings, it is possible to reduce pain and improve quality of life.