Objective To examine the efficacy of acupuncture in hastening recovery and reducing long-term morbidity from Bell’s palsy. Methods We searched the Cochrane Neuromuscular Disease Group Register Group (Till Feb. 2002), MEDLINE (Jan. 1966 to Dec. 2002); EMBASE (Jan. 1980 to Dec. 2002), LILACS (Jan. 1982 to Dec. 2002) and Chinese Biomedical Retrieval System (Jan. 1978 to Dec. 2002). We also searched grey literature. We identified all randomised or quasi-randomised controlled trials involving acupuncture in the treatment of Bell’s palsy, selected the trials ment the inclusion criteria, assessed the methodological quality, extracted data on trials’ patients, interventions, outcome measurements and results and undertook analysis. Results Three small randomised controlled trials were included but due to some flaws in study designs or reporting and clinical differences between trials, data from trials were not combined in a meta-analysis，and a descriptive analysis was performed.The result indicated a positive effect of acupuncture (all Plt;0.01). Conclusions Three small studies in this review suggested a beneficial effect but the poor quality of the trials precludes us from drawing firm conclusions. There is a need for high quality randomized controlled trials (RCTs) using a study design which assures high internal validity.
Objective To systematically review the efficacy and safety of acupuncture for the treatment of tumor-related cognitive dysfunction. Methods The PubMed, The Cochrane Library, EMbase, CNKI, WanFang Data, VIP and CBM databases were electronically searched to collect studies on acupuncture for the treatment of tumor-related cognitive dysfunction from the establishment of the database to February 13th, 2022. Two reviewers independently screened the literature, extracted data, and assessed the risk of bias of the included studies. Meta-analysis was then performed using RevMan 5.4.1 software. Results A total of 16 studies involving 1 361 patients were included. The results of meta-analysis showed that the mini-mental state examination (MD=1.82, 95%CI 1.49 to 2.15, P<0.000 01) and Montreal cognitive assessment (MD=1.56, 95%CI 0.83 to 2.29, P<0.0001) scores of the acupuncture treatment group were superior to those in the control group. Furthermore, the acupuncture treatment group showed a reduced incidence of postoperative cognitive dysfunction (RR=0.50, 95%CI 0.39 to 0.63, P<0.000 01) and decreased levels of interleukin-6 (MD=?10.43, 95%CI ?14.91 to ?5.95, P<0.000 01), interleukin-1β (MD=?47.14, 95%CI ?63.92 to ?30.36, P<0.000 01), and tumor necrosis factor-α (MD=?9.13, 95%CI ?12.38 to ?5.89, P<0.000 01). In contrast, the visual analog scale score of the acupuncture treatment group (MD=?1.26, 95%CI ?2.06 to ?0.47, P=0.002) was better than that of the control group. No significant difference was found in the level of central nervous system-specific protein (S100β) (MD=?0.06, 95%CI ?0.13 to 0.01, P=0.12) between the two groups. Conclusion Acupuncture therapy can improve tumor-related cognitive function in patients. Its curative effect is better than that of non-acupuncture therapy; however, its ability to reduce S100β levels is not significantly different from that of non-acupuncture therapy. Due to the limited quantity and quality of the included studies, more high-quality studies are needed to verify the above conclusion.
Objectives We aimed to assess the methodological qual ity of RCT on acupuncture for migraine prophylaxis. Methods With the searching terms including acupuncture, migraine, prophylaxis and prevent, etc, the database of the Cochrane Library (Issue 4, 2007), MEDLINE (1966-2007), EMBase (1966-2007), CBM (1978-2007) and CMCC (1994-2007) were searched from their date of start publ ication. Chinese medical journals and relevant academic conference proceedings were hand searched as well. Several items in included trials were assessed, including methodology, diagnostic criteria, inclusion/exclusion criteria, acupuncture/control interventions, outcome measures and follow-up, etc. Result Among the 12 included trials, 9 trials overseas were high-qual ity and 3 in China were low-quality. Frequency or days of migraine attacks and SF-36/SF-12 were often evaluated as outcome measures in western countries, while headache index was used in China. Among the 12 trials, 9 reported the follow-up outcomes and 8 mentioned adverse events. Conclusion There was no high qual ity trial on acupuncture for migraine prophylaxis in China. The outcome measures in trials published in China by now can not evaluate the outcomes of acupuncture for migraine prophylaxis accurately. To study designs, advantages of trials oversea can be used for reference. To Chinese cl inical physicians, prophylactic therapy and abortive therapy of migraine should be distinguished in order to design high-qual ity study on acupuncture for migraine prophylaxis.
World Federation of Acupuncture-Moxibustion Societies (WFAS) standard Norms for Formulation and Evaluation of the Clinical Practice Guidelines of Acupuncture and Moxibustion (Hereinafter referred to as Norms) is the first methodological specification for the development of guidelines of acupuncture and moxibustion (Acup-Mox) issued by an international academic organization. The Norms stipulates the principles, procedures, review process and requirements of the development of WFAS guidelines of Acup-Mox. It also proposes the development method, evaluation method, and reporting standards of WFAS guidelines of Acup-Mox. This article introduces the development process of the Norms and provides an interpretation of the methodological supplementary requirements for key links such as "formulation of clinical questions", "evidence retrieval, evaluation and synthesis", and "consensus decision-making", as well as the "framework and contents of recommendation" to provide relevant references for users in learning and using the Guidelines.
Objective To explore the methods used for developing evidence-based clinical practice guidelines for acupuncture. Methods Based on the characteristics of acupuncture in traditional Chinese medicine,and principles of evidence-based medicine, this article introduces and summarizes the processes and methods for developing an evidence-based clinical practice guideline for acupuncture. We analyzed similarities and differences between clinical practice guidelines for acupuncture and for other interventions. We used an evidence-based clinical practice guideline of acupuncture for depression as an example to illustrate the methods of literature search, grading of evidence and recommendations, evidence evaluation and consensus formation. Results Preliminary recommendations on the methods for developing evidence-based clinical practice guidelines for acupuncture were made. Conclusion Based on the optimized rational methodology for developing clinical guidelines, evidence-based high-quality clinical practice guidelines for acupuncture could be established.
ObjectiveTo overview the reporting and methodology quality of systematic reviews/meta-analysis on acupuncture in the treatment of primary osteoporosis (POP).MethodsPubMed, EMbase, The Cochrane Library, CBM, WanFang Data, CNKI and VIP databases were electronically searched to collect systematic reviews/meta-analysis on acupuncture in the treatment of POP from inception to July 2018. Two reviewers independently screened literature, extracted data, and assessed the quality of systematic reviews. A Measurement Tool to Assess Systematic Reviews (AMSTAR) methodological quality score and Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis (PRISMA) were used to assess the methodological quality and reporting quality of the systematic reviews, along with the risk of homogeneity and publication bias.ResultsA total of 11 systematic reviews/meta-analysis were included and multiple evaluations of the radar plot showed that the quality average rank scored 7.68. The major problems in studies were lack of items registration, imperfect search strategies and selection bias and so on.ConclusionThe quality of systematic reviews/meta-analysis of acupuncture in the treatment of POP is insufficient, indicating that the methodological and reporting quality of systematic reviews should be further strengthened.
Objective To assess the quality reports on acupuncture in the treatment of postherpetic neuralgia. Methods MEDLINE, CBM, CMCC and CNKI from 1994 to 2006 were searched electronically. Handsearching was also done. The retrieved articles were assessed in terms of several factors, including the type of clinical research, methodology, diagnostic criteria, inclusion/exclusion criteria, effectiveness measurements, calculation of sample size, follow-up, etc. Results Among the 109 included articles, only 6 were true randomized controlled trials. There were 17 quasi-randomized controlled trials, 13 non-randomized concurrent controlled trials, 1 case-control study and 63 narrative studies. 29 of the reports clearly described the diagnostic criteria, 14 mentioned the inclusion/exclusion criteria, 79 reported the effectiveness measurements, none mentioned the calculation of sample size, 24 reported the follow-up outcomes, and only 1 mentioned adverse reactions. Conclusion More prospective, multicenter, large-scale, high-quality randomised trials are needed, and recommendations should also be made for future evaluations of methodological quality.
ObjectiveTo observe the clinical efficacy of acupuncture treatment on primary mild and moderate pruritus ani. MethodsAccording to the diagnostic and inclusion criteria, 50 outpatients between March 2013 and March 2014 were randomly divided into acupuncture group and drug control group, with 25 cases in each. The acupuncture treatment group were treated by perianal local surrounding needling mostly with body acupuncture treatment for 14 times in 4 weeks. Drug control group were given oral antihistamine drugs and traditional Chinese medicine, pevisone cream rub for 4 weeks. Itching index scores, dermatology life quality index scores and treatment satisfaction were observed before and after treatment, and referral number and average number of pruritus of the two groups were observed in six months after the end of treatment. ResultsAfter 4 weeks of treatment, itching index score of patients in the acupuncture treatment group was significantly lower than the drug control group; the dermatology life quality index scores and treatment satisfaction were significantly better than the drug control group, and in the six months after the end of treatment, referral number and the average number of pruritus were lower than the drug control group. The differences were statistically significant (P<0.05). ConclusionClinical efficacy of acupuncture treatment on primary mild and moderate pruritus ani is significant, and the long term effect is stable.
ObjectiveTo systematically sort out acupuncture therapy research report specification issues and provide a reference for the selection of key problems in the specification of acupuncture therapy network meta-analysis reports. MethodsComputer searches of PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, Cochrane Library, CNKI, WanFang Data, and VIP databases were conducted to collect studies related to reporting norms for acupuncture therapy, with a search time from inception to November 2022. Questions were constructed according to the SPIDER model and inclusion and exclusion criteria were developed. CASP was used to evaluate the methodological quality of the included literature, and a qualitative systematic evaluation thematic synthesis method was used to analyze, summarize, and integrate the questions on reporting norms for acupuncture therapy research evidence to create a pool of question entries. ResultsA total of 66 papers covering four countries were included, including 17 papers from qualitative studies and 49 papers from quantitative studies. The CASP evaluation results showed that the overall quality of the included studies was high, and the quality of the English studies was higher than that of the Chinese studies. The thematic synthesis method resulted in 22 question entries in 7 categories. The 7 categories of questions included title, abstract, preface, methods, results, discussion and other report specification questions. The 22 entries included "Is there a need to report specific types of acupuncture therapy", "Is there a need to report based on the type of original study and its number", etc. ConclusionThere are many problems with reporting norms in existing acupuncture studies, so it is necessary to collate and summarize the key issues of reporting norms for acupuncture network meta-analysis to provide a scientific and theoretical basis for the development of reporting guidelines for acupuncture network meta-analysis.
ObjectiveTo provide a scoping review of the clinical studies of acupuncture on Alzheimer' s disease (AD). MethodsThe CNKI, WanFang Data, VIP, CBM, Web of Science, PubMed, EMbase, Cochrane Library databases, and ClinicalTrials.gov, ChiCTR clinical trial registration systems were searched to collect clinical studies on acupuncture treatment of AD from inception to May 14, 2022. Scope review method was used to summarize and analyze the publication year trend, type, degree of disease, traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) syndrome differentiation, sample size, treatment plan, intervention time, and outcome. ResultsA total of 226 clinical original research were included. This field emerged in 1995 and has been increasing. The main type of clinical research was randomized controlled trials. 56 studies paid attention to the severity of AD. Only 54 studies classified AD according to different criteria of TCM syndrome differentiation. There were only 4 studies with large sample size (>200 cases). Conventional acupuncture was the main intervention method in clinical research, with a total of 129 articles. Electroacupuncture was the main special acupuncture method, a total of 31 articles. More than 70 % of the studies had a course of intervention between 84 and 168 days. Among the 12 types of outcome indicators, cognitive function, clinical efficiency, activity function evaluation, cerebrospinal fluid and blood biomarkers, and adverse reactions were the most concerned outcomes. However, less attention was paid to neuropsychiatric symptoms and quality of life in AD patients. Acupuncture could improve the cognitive function of AD patients, but the current clinical related mechanism research was shallow, and the acupuncture point selection was also more diverse. ConclusionThe clinical research of acupuncture in AD has formed a scale, but the current research type is single. The clinical research design schemes are various but not yet unified, and there is a lack of relevant authoritative TCM standards.