Background: Lifestyle risks for myopia are well known and the disease has become a major global public health issue worldwide. There is a relation between reading, writing, and computer work and the development of myopia. Methods: Within this prospective pilot study in 44 patients aged between 6 and 12 years with myopia we compared possible treatment effects of acupuncture or moxibustion. The diopters of the right and left eye were evaluated before and after the two treatment methods. Results: Myopia was improved in 14 eyes of 13 patients (15.9%) within both complementary methods. Using acupuncture an improvement was observed in seven eyes from six patients out of 22 patients and a similar result (improvement in seven eyes from seven patients out of 22 patients) was noticed in the moxibustion group. The extent of improvement was better in the acupuncture group (p = 0.008 s., comparison before and after treatment); however, group analysis between acupuncture and moxibustion revealed no significant difference. Conclusions: Possible therapeutic aspects with the help of evidence-based complementary methods like acupuncture or moxibustion have not yet been investigated adequately in myopic patients. Our study showed that both acupuncture and moxibustion can improve myopia of young patients. Acupuncture seems to be more effective than moxibustion in treating myopia, however group analysis did not prove this trend. Therefore, further Big data studies are necessary to confirm or refute the preliminary results.

Allergic rhinitis is a symptomatic allergic disease of the nose that affects 10 to 20% of the global population. Chinese otolaryngologists use one acupuncture needle to stimulate the sphenopalatine ganglion because of its potential advantages for treating moderate-severe persistent allergic rhinitis compared with traditional Chinese acupuncture (verum acupuncture); however, little evidence is available to support the wide clinical use thus far. Therefore, we propose a protocol for a parallel, multicenter, assessor-blinded, randomized controlled trial to evaluate sphenopalatine ganglion stimulation with one acupuncture needle compared to verum acupuncture for treatment of moderate-severe persistent allergic rhinitis. In the trial, 96 patients previously diagnosed with moderate-severe persistent allergic rhinitis and meeting all inclusion criteria will be allocated to one of two equal therapeutic groups by using a computer-generated randomization list. The interventional group will receive sphenopalatine ganglion stimulation with one acupuncture needle for 4 weeks (once or twice weekly, total four to eight sessions); attending physicians will decide whether the second session is required in a week by examining signs and symptoms. The control group will receive individualized verum acupuncture for 4 weeks (twice weekly, total eight sessions). Follow-up evaluations will be performed 1 month later. The primary outcome measure is the change in the total nasal symptom score from the baseline to week 4. The secondary outcome measures include onset time and duration of effectiveness in every session, change in number of days with moderate-severe persistent allergic rhinitis from the baseline to week 8, change in total immunoglobulin E level and eosinophil count in venous blood from the baseline to week 4, change in Rhinoconjunctivitis Quality of Life Questionnaire score from the baseline to week 4, and clinical waiting time. The trial should provide evidence for the benefits of sphenopalatine ganglion stimulation with one acupuncture needle for treating moderate-severe persistent allergic rhinitis, including better change in total nasal symptom score, faster onset time, longer duration of effectiveness, and shorter treatment time. Current Controlled Trials: ISRCTN21980724 (registered on 27 March 2014).