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Background: Alzheimer's disease (AD) is an age-related neurodegenerative disease that is slowly becoming a global problem. Salvia miltiorrhiza (SM) has a history of thousands of years of use in China. In recent years, SM has been reported to have the effect of improving Alzheimer's disease. However, there is no systematic review of its efficacy and safety yet. Therefore, we propose a systematic review to evaluate the efficacy and safety of SM for AD patients. Methods: Six databases will be searched: China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI), China Biological Medicine (CBM), China Scientific Journals Database (CSJD), Wanfang database, PubMed, and EMBASE. The information is searched from January 2010 to July 2020. Languages are limited to English and Chinese. The primary outcomes include changes in the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE), Alzheimer's Disease Assessment Scale-cognitive subscale (ADAS-Cog) and Activities of Daily Living scale (ADL). Additional outcomes include clinical effective rate and adverse event rate. The Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and Evaluation (GRADE) system will be used to assess the strength of the evidence. Results: This systematic review will evaluate the efficacy and safety of SM in the treatment of Alzheimer's disease. Conclusion: This systematic review provides evidence as to whether SM is effective and safe for Alzheimer's disease patients. Systematic review registration: INPLASY202070066.

Background:Obesity is a growing chronic health problem worldwide. Studies about acupuncture for obesity treatment are many. But there are some doubts about the effectiveness of acupuncture vs sham acupuncture in treating obesity due to its lack of an evidence-based medical proof. Therefore

Since the evidence regarding the association between maternal hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection and impaired intrauterine fetal growth had not been conclusive, the aim of the present study was to evaluate the risk of maternal HCV infection in association with intrauterine fetal growth restriction (IUGR) and/or low birth weight infants (LBW). We performed an extensive literature search of PubMed, MEDLINE, and EMBASE through December 1, 2015. The odds ratios (ORs) of HCV infection and IUGR/LBW were calculated and reported with 95% confidence intervals (95% CIs). Statistical analysis was performed using RevMen 5.3 and Stata 10.0. Seven studies involving 4,185,414 participants and 5094 HCV infection cases were included. Significant associations between HCV infection and IUGR (OR = 1.53, 95% CI: 1.40–1.68, fixed effect model) as well as LBW were observed (OR = 1.97, 95% CI: 1.43–2.71, random effect model). The results still indicated consistencies after adjusting for multiple risk factors which could affect fetal growth, including maternal age, parity, maternal smoking, alcohol abuse, drugs abuse, coinfected with HBV/HIV and preeclampsia. Our findings suggested that maternal HCV infection was significantly associated with an increased risk of impaired intrauterine fetal growth. In clinical practice, a closer monitoring of intrauterine fetal growth by a series of ultrasound might be necessary for HCV-infected pregnant population.

This study aims to analyze the clinical characteristics and to manage patients with retained placenta left in situ accompanied by fever following vaginal delivery. Twenty-one patients with retained placenta in association with fever following vaginal delivery were enrolled and managed at the maternity department of our university hospital between 2012 and 2014. All patients had risk factors for development of placenta accreta: previous cesarean sections (4/21), previous curettage (15/21), or uterine malformations (7/21). Placenta accreta was diagnosed following vaginal delivery in all patients, and manual removal of the placenta was attempted in 20 of 21 patients. The placenta left in situ was partial in 19 patients and was complete in 2 patients. All patients were managed with a multidisciplinary approach. Mifepristone was administrated to 16 patients. Fourteen patients received uterine artery embolization. Eleven patients were treated with ultrasound-guided curettage within 24 hours following delivery. Seven patients needed delayed-hysterectomy due to development of complications. Intrauterine operations during labor are not recommended if placenta accreta occurs in the fundus and/or in the cornual region of the uterus. Antibiotic treatment, interventional therapy, and ultrasound-guided curettage within 24 hours following vaginal delivery are the recommended conservative management strategies.