The aim of the study was to investigate the clinical effects of abdominal massage on patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) and its influence on the intestinal microflora. We conducted a randomized, controlled clinical trial. A total of 60 patients with T2DM, who met the inclusion criteria, were randomly allocated to the control group, the routine massage group, and the abdominal massage group. The control group received health education and maintained their hypoglycemic drug treatment plan. The routine massage group and the abdominal massage group received different massage interventions. In addition to glucose and lipid metabolism indicators, we quantitatively analyzed the gut microbiota to assess the effects of massage on the intestinal microflora of patients with T2DM. Compared with the control group, the abdominal massage improved levels of glycated hemoglobin, total cholesterol, Enterobacter, and Bifidobacteria with significant differences (P = 0.02, P = 0.03, P = 0.03, and P = 0.03). The comparison within group showed that the levels of the four bacterial genera in the abdominal massage group revealed significant differences before and after treatment (P = 0.006, P < 0.001, P < 0.001, and P = 0.002). The comparison between the routine massage group and the abdominal massage group was not significantly different in all levels of test indices. The abdominal massage group regulated levels of Enterobacter and Lactobacilli to a greater extent than the routine massage group. Additionally, abdominal massage decreased Enterococcus levels. The results of this study showed that abdominal massage has clinical advantages over routine massage. Specifically, this intervention may correct microflora disturbances to a certain extent.

Introduction The global incidence of patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) with dry eye is increasing annually, which imposes additional healthcare costs and financial burden on families and societies. In clinical practice, artificial tears are often used for symptomatic treatment, but these can only relieve the symptoms of discomfort. Acupuncture is a widely used alternative therapy. Indeed, randomised trials have found that acupuncture confers a definite therapeutic effect on patients with T2DM with dry eye. However, systematic reviews on the effectiveness and safety of acupuncture are lacking, therefore this systematic review aims to evaluate the effectiveness and safety of acupuncture for T2DM with dry eye. Methods and analysis Four English databases (PubMed, Cochrane Library, Embase and Ovid), three Chinese databases (China National Knowledge Infrastructure, Wanfang, Chonqing VIP Information), three Japanese databases (Japan Science, Technology Agency and Japan Medical Abstracts Society) and three Korean databases (Korean Medical database, Oriental Medicine Advanced Searching Integrated System and Research Information Service System) will be searched for reports published between 1 January 2007 and 1 October 2021. Only randomised controlled trials will be included, and language or publication dates will not be restricted. Two researchers will independently extract, manage and analyse data. The primary outcomes will include Schirmer’s I test, breakup time, corneal fluorescein staining and ocular surface disease index scores. Secondary results will include visual analogue scale scores for ocular symptoms and any adverse events related to acupuncture. We will use Review Manager V.5.4 for the meta-analysis. The risk of bias will be independently assessed using Cochrane’s ‘risk of bias’ tool. Ethics and dissemination Ethical approval will not be required since raw data will not be collected or generated. Our findings will be disseminated through peer-reviewed journal. PROSPERO registration number CRD42021271891.

Objective: This study aims to observe the effect of Electroacupuncture (EA) on improving ocular surface inflammation and HMGB1 -related signaling pathways in dry eye disease (DED). Methods: Healthy male C57BL/6 J mice were treated with scopolamine hydrobromide for 21 consecutive days to establish the animal models for DED. After 21 days, fluorometholone (Flu), EA, and sham EA (Sham) treatments were performed. The effect of EA on DED surface inflammation was evaluated by corneal fluorescence staining, phenol red thread test, in vivo confocal microscopy (IVCM), and corneal histopathology. The influence of EA on high-mobility group box 1 ( HMGB1 ), receptor for advanced glycation end products ( RAGE ), toll-like receptor 2 ( TLR2 ) and toll-like receptor 4 ( TLR4 ) was assessed by immunohistochemistry, real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR), and western blot. The influence of EA on interleukin-6 (IL-6) and interleukin-10 (IL-10) were measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Results: EA can significantly increase tear flow and reduce corneal staining and corneal stromal inflammation, while also improving the morphologic structure of the cornea and lacrimal glands. The levels of HMGB1, RAGE, TLR2, TLR4, and IL-6 were significantly decreased while IL-10 level was significantly increased after EA treatment, indicating that EA may improve dry eye surface inflammation by inhibiting HMGB1-related signaling pathways. Conclusion: The findings presented in our study demonstrate that EA may improve ocular surface inflammation in mice with DED by inhibiting the HMGB1-related signaling pathways. Therefore, EA may be a potential therapeutic target for DED.

Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) is a condition marked by insulin resistance and hyperglycemia. Static training, as a form of exercise intervention, is increasingly demonstrating benefits for improving T2DM. However, the underlying mechanisms remain inadequately elucidated. Research suggests that insulin-like growth factor 2 (IGF-2) could be a significant contributor to this phenomenon. In this study, static training significantly reduced fasting and random blood glucose, total cholesterol, triglycerides, and LDL, while increasing HDL and improving insulin sensitivity. Transcriptomics suggested that static training might regulate the IGF-2 pathway and related genes. WB and PCR results showed that IGF-2 expression was upregulated in the static training group, and IGF-2 inhibitors attenuated these effects, whereas IGF-2 overexpression enhanced them. In conclusion, static training improves insulin resistance in T2DM mice via the IGF-2/IGF-1R pathway, suggesting its potential as a therapeutic intervention.