Background
Anxiety, fatigue, Pain, anxiety, listlessness, pain, CFS, depression, Depression, TCM
YANG DEFICIENCY, COLD, CHRONIC FATIGUE SYNDROME, NA DEFICIENCY
Chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) is a condition characterized by persistent and debilitating fatigue lasting for at least 6 months, which is not relieved by rest [According to the theory of traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), fatigue is the result of Yang deficiency. Yang, or Yang-qi, an important concept in TCM, represents the vital energy of life. Yang deficiency refers to a pathological state characterized by a deficiency of Yang qi, representing the impaired functions of warming and promotion. Consequently, when organ function declines, the symptoms such as decreased vitality, listlessness, aversion to cold and preference for warmth, and reduced metabolism will manifest. The most typical affected Zang and Fu of Yang deficiency is Spleen-Kidney Yang. Moxibustion has the ability to produce Yang-warming effect and improve deficient Yang for Zang and Fu. Although the precise mechanism by which moxibustion treats CFS is not fully explained, moxibustion therapy has been shown to be effective in relieving symptoms [We searched several databases (PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, Chinese National Knowledge Infrastructure Database, Wanfang Database, China Science and Technology Journal Database, etc.) from their respective inception dates to January 31, 2020. The search was performed using keywords such as ‘moxibustion’, ‘moxibustion therapy’, ‘moxibustion treatment’, ‘dose’, ‘moxibustion dose’, ‘dose–effect relationship’, ‘moxibustion effect’, etc. The searching results found that moxibustion is influenced by various factors that affect its therapeutic efficacy, such as moxibustion dose, which includes moxibustion duration, treatment frequency, moxibustion amount-size, and the number of moxa cones used [So far, CFS trials evaluating the efficacy and safety of therapies have employed self-reported subjective measurements, including the Chalder Fatigue Scale, Short Form 36 Health Survey Questionnaire, Anxiety and Depression Scale, and Visual Analogue Pain Rating Scale, to evaluate improvements in physical function, anxiety, depression, and pain [