Jaseng Korean Medicine Hospital Hosts the '2024 Jaseng International Academic Conference'

Over 100 Scholars, Researchers, and Korean Medicine Doctors Attend

Experts in integrative medicine from around the world gathered in one place to strengthen the scientific evidence of integrative medicine and expand the scope of research.

Presenters at the 2024 Jaseng International Academic Conference are taking a commemorative photo. [Image source=Jaseng Korean Medicine Hospital]

Jaseng Hospital of Korean Medicine (Director Lee Jin-ho) announced on the 2nd that the '2024 Jaseng Annual Academic International Conference' was successfully held on the 30th of last month. The event, held at the COEX Convention Hall in Seoul, was attended by over 100 scholars, researchers, and Korean medicine doctors working in the field of integrative medicine.

Jaseng Hospital of Korean Medicine holds an international academic conference every year to promote global academic exchange. This year marked the 5th conference, held under the theme "Future Tasks for Establishing Solid Evidence in Integrative Medicine," featuring presentations and discussions aimed at strengthening research capabilities in integrative medicine.

The keynote speakers of the day included globally recognized scholars in health and medical research: ▲ David Moher, Professor of Clinical Epidemiology at the Ottawa Hospital Research Institute, Canada ▲ Liu Jianping, Director of the Evidence-Based Chinese Medicine Research Institute at Beijing University of Chinese Medicine ▲ Ha In-hyuk, Director of the Spine and Joint Research Institute at Jaseng Hospital of Korean Medicine.

The first keynote speaker, Professor Moher, is renowned for his participation in developing numerous medical research guidelines such as CONSORT 2024 and PRISMA 2020. His papers have been cited over 700,000 times worldwide. Through this conference, he explained how to write more robust integrative medicine research papers. He emphasized, "We must pursue efficient research methods by reducing unnecessary tasks, procedures, and data waste," adding, "It is important to comply with ethical guidelines while including only the information that is essential and useful to patients and readers."

Ha In-hyuk, Director of the Spine and Joint Research Institute at Jaseng Hospital of Korean Medicine, presented various studies and projects conducted by the institute on integrative medicine research in spinal disorders and chronic pain. He particularly highlighted the multifaceted efforts and achievements made toward the scientific advancement and globalization of Korean medicine.

Director Liu Jianping analyzed the evidence of integrative medicine for musculoskeletal diseases using bibliometric methods. Bibliometrics is a method that derives statistics through literature review and analysis. Director Liu stated, "Based on the data from papers demonstrating the effectiveness of integrative medicine for musculoskeletal diseases, we explain current trends in integrative medicine and emphasize that researchers must collaborate to establish solid evidence."

Following this, the first session was held under the theme "Medical Evidence of Acupuncture: Research Outcomes and Directions." This session covered topics such as ▲ Practical randomized controlled trials in acupuncture research: strengths and weaknesses (Professor Therese Alræk, Norwegian National Research Center in Complementary and Alternative Medicine) ▲ Issues with the placebo effect in acupuncture (Professor Stefan Birch, Kristiania University College, Norway) ▲ Current status of acupuncture research (Professor Kim Tae-hoon, Kyung Hee University Korean Medicine Hospital).

Professor Therese Alræk cited papers that revealed the effects of acupuncture on various conditions such as chronic low back pain and migraines through practical randomized controlled trials. Practical randomized controlled trials are experimental models that divide subjects into treatment and control groups in environments similar to actual clinical practice to compare and evaluate treatment effects. She said, "In the West, over the past 30 years, practical randomized controlled clinical trials have been used to understand the scope and real effects of acupuncture research," adding, "To obtain high-quality results in practical randomized trials, statistical and clinical safety as well as cost-effectiveness must be met."

The second session featured speakers under the theme "Evidence Synthesis and Open Science in Integrative Medicine." Evidence synthesis is the process of combining various studies and data to draw conclusions on a specific topic, helping to provide reliable medical evidence. Open science is a research approach that provides transparent and trustworthy data under the concept that scientific knowledge should be accessible to everyone.

This session included presentations on ▲ Quantity and quality of integrative medicine evidence for chronic pain management (Professor Juan Franco, Medical Faculty, University of D?sseldorf, Germany) ▲ Effects of open science and meta-research on integrative medicine research (Researcher Jeremy Ng, Ottawa Hospital Research Institute, Canada) ▲ Yoga and meditation for chronic pain (Professor Holger Kramer, University Hospital T?bingen, Germany) ▲ Fusion of diverse perspectives: Introduction to integrative medicine (Director Lee Yesul, Spine and Joint Research Institute, Jaseng Hospital of Korean Medicine).

Researcher Jeremy Ng drew attention by emphasizing the importance of open science and meta-research in integrative medicine research. Meta-research is a research method that analyzes and clarifies the principles of science itself. He stressed that through open science and meta-research, research design and data should be transparently disclosed to promote the standardization of integrative medicine research.

After all programs concluded, the closing remarks were delivered by Park Byung-mo, Chairman of the Jaseng Medical Foundation. Chairman Park said, "Solid medical evidence is essential for integrative medicine, which is gaining global attention, to advance to the next stage," and added, "I hope this academic conference serves as an opportunity to enhance researchers' capabilities and expand the base of integrative medicine research."