Hu QH, Liu W, Yin HQ, Wang YF, Zhang WK, Shen ML. Efficacy of acupoint catgut embedding therapy for phlegm-turbidity and blood-stasis metabolic dysfunction-associated fatty liver disease. World J Gastrointest Surg 2025; 17(12): 112063 [DOI: 10.4240/wjgs.v17.i12.112063]
Corresponding Author of This Article
Mei-Long Shen, PhD, Chief Physician, Department of Hepatology, Taizhou Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine, No. 86 Jiqu East Road, Hailing District, Taizhou 225300, Jiangsu Province, China. shenml9326@126.com
Research Domain of This Article
Gastroenterology & Hepatology
Article-Type of This Article
Retrospective Study
Open-Access Policy of This Article
This article is an open-access article which was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Qiu-Hong Hu, Wen Liu, Mei-Long Shen, Department of Hepatology, Taizhou Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Taizhou 225300, Jiangsu Province, China
Hong-Qin Yin, Yun-Fei Wang, Wen-Kui Zhang, Department of Acupuncture, Taizhou Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Taizhou 225300, Jiangsu Province, China
Co-first authors: Qiu-Hong Hu and Wen Liu.
Author contributions: Shen ML designed research; Hu QH and Liu W performed research; Yin HQ, Wang YF and Zhang WK contributed new reagents or analytic tools; Shen ML, Hu QH and Liu W analyzed data; Shen ML wrote the paper. Hu QH and Liu W contributed equally to this work as co-first authors.
Supported by Taizhou City Social Development Guidance Plan Project, No. TS02012.
Institutional review board statement: This study was approved by the Ethic Committee of Taizhou Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine.
Informed consent statement: All study participants, or their legal guardian, provided informed written consent prior to study enrollment.
Conflict-of-interest statement: There is no conflict of interest.
Data sharing statement: No additional data are available.
Open Access: This article is an open-access article that was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution NonCommercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: https://creativecommons.org/Licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Corresponding author: Mei-Long Shen, PhD, Chief Physician, Department of Hepatology, Taizhou Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine, No. 86 Jiqu East Road, Hailing District, Taizhou 225300, Jiangsu Province, China. shenml9326@126.com
Received: August 26, 2025 Revised: October 8, 2025 Accepted: October 31, 2025 Published online: December 27, 2025 Processing time: 120 Days and 17.8 Hours
Abstract
BACKGROUND
No optimal treatment has been established for metabolic dysfunction–associated fatty liver disease with phlegm-turbidity and blood-stasis syndrome (MAFLD-PTBS), highlighting the need for more effective therapeutic approaches.
AIM
To elucidate the clinical effectiveness of acupoint catgut embedding therapy (ACET) for MAFLD-PTBS and preliminarily examine its association with biomarkers, particularly platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF).
METHODS
We retrospectively enrolled 80 patients with MAFLD-PTBS, divided into an ACET group (n = 40) receiving ACET therapy and a control group (n = 40) treated with conventional hepatoprotective and enzyme-lowering oral medications. Therapeutic outcomes were compared between the groups. Changes in body mass index (BMI), abdominal circumference (AC), body weight (BW), total cholesterol (TC), triglycerides (TG), alanine aminotransferase (ALT), aspartate aminotransferase (AST), liver stiffness measurement (LSM), a four-item liver fibrosis panel, and serum concentration of PDGF, transforming growth factor-β1 (TGF-β1), and cytokeratin 18 (CK-18) were assessed before and after treatment.
RESULTS
Significant differences were observed both within group (pre- vs post-treatment) and between group post-intervention for all measured indicators, including BMI, AC, BW, TC, TG, ALT, AST, LSM, liver fibrosis indices, PDGF, TGF-β1, and CK-18 (all P < 0.05).
CONCLUSION
ACET exhibits promising clinical effectiveness for managing MAFLD-PTBS, with effects closely associated with serum concentrations of PDGF, TGF-β1, and CK-18.
Core Tip: This study included 80 patients with metabolic dysfunction–associated fatty liver disease with phlegm-turbidity and blood-stasis syndrome (MAFLD-PTBS). Multiple diagnostic indicators were evaluated, and the results revealed significant clinical efficacy of acupoint catgut embedding in this population. The therapeutic effects were closely associated with serum concentrations of platelet-derived growth factor, transforming growth factor-β1, and cytokeratin 18. These results suggest that acupoint catgut embedding may serve as a valuable therapeutic option and provide relevant guidance for managing MAFLD-PTBS.
