《中英對照讀新聞》Acupuncture shows promise for hot flashes 針灸可望用來治療熱潮紅

◎陳成良

Acupuncture may offer women an alternative for easing hot flashes during menopause, preliminary research suggests.

初步研究顯示，針灸或可成為舒緩婦女更年期熱潮紅症狀的替代療法。

In a study of 29 women with frequent, daily hot flashes, researchers found that those who received acupuncture began to have fewer and less severe symptoms during the night.

在一項針對29名每天有熱潮紅症狀婦女的研究中，發現那些接受針灸治療的人，夜間出現熱潮紅的次數開始變少，症狀也較不嚴重。

As nighttime hot flashes improved, so did the quality of the women’s sleep, the researchers report in the journal Fertility & Sterility.

研究人員發表在「生育與不孕」期刊的報告中說，隨著夜間熱潮紅症狀改善，婦女睡眠品質也會提升。

Hot flashes are a common part of menopause, and women who get them often have difficulty getting a good night’s sleep. Hormone replacement therapy is effective at quelling hot flashes, but given the risks of the therapy -- including increased risks of heart disease and breast cancer -- many women are interested in alternative treatments.

熱潮紅是更年期常見症狀，婦女晚上經常睡不好覺。賀爾蒙替代療法能有效舒緩熱潮紅，但有鑑於這種療法有其風險，包括增加罹患心臟病及乳癌的機率，許多婦女鍾情替代療法。

The new findings offer preliminary evidence that acupuncture works, but it’s too early to recommend the procedure for hot flashes, senior study author Dr. Rachel Manber said. "Large replication studies are necessary before we move from bench to bed," said Manber, an associate professor of psychiatry at Stanford University School of Medicine in California.

資深研究執筆人曼伯博士說，這些新發現提出針灸能治療熱潮紅的初步證據，但目前要建議採用此療程，仍為時太早。加州史丹佛大學醫學院精神病學副教授曼伯說：「從實驗室到臨床之前，仍須進行大量相同的研究。」

新聞辭典

promise：名詞、希望；前途。 The young man shows promise as a poet.（這位青年有成為詩人的希望）。

hot flash：熱潮紅，更年期婦女最常見的症狀，據統計約有75%的更年期婦女會經歷此症狀，通常感到有熱氣直衝臉部，造成滿面通紅，尤其是晚上最常發生。

from bench to bed：片語，實驗室到臨床。同理「臨床到實驗室」則為from bed to bench，bench在此指實驗室的工作檯。