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. 2023 Dec 13:10:1268220.
doi: 10.3389/fmed.2023.1268220. eCollection 2023.

Should acupuncture become a complementary therapy in the treatment of uterine fibroid: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials

Yuehan Ren #  1   2 , Junning Zhang #  2   3 , Weizhen Wu  2 , Yi Yuan  2 , Jiale Wang  2 , Yi Tang  2 , Yan Liao  2 , Xinmin Liu  1
Affiliations

Should acupuncture become a complementary therapy in the treatment of uterine fibroid: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials

Yuehan Ren et al. Front Med (Lausanne). .

Abstract

Background: Uterine fibroids (UFs) are the most common benign tumors in women of reproductive age. The most effective treatment is myomectomy, but there is no long-term or low-invasive treatment option exists. Acupuncture can be used to treat UFs in a variety of ways. However, there is no meta-analytic synthesis including valid data that explored the efficacy of acupuncture for UFs.

Objective: To assess the efficacy and safety of acupuncture for treating UFs.

Methods: The PRISMA 2020 checklist was used. We identified and extracted the trials through may 2023 from six databases. The quality of the trials was assessed using the risk of bias (2.0). Meta-analysis was performed using RevMan 5.4 software, and it was synthesized using the random-effects model if the included studies were in high heterogeneity. Subgroup and sensitivity analysis were used if necessary.

Results: A total of 1,035 trials were identified, of which 11 were included in the review and meta-analysis. In terms of acupuncture scheme design and fibroid-related symptoms, the trials are highly heterogeneous. All 11 trials have reported acupuncture types, with traditional acupuncture and electroacupuncture being the more representative subgroups. A qualitative review of existing evidence shows that acupuncture has no serious adverse reaction on UFs. Meta-analysis shows that acupuncture can effectively reduce the volume of UFs (MD - 3.89, 95% CI - 5.23 to - 2.56, P < 0.00001) or uterine volume (MD - 16.22, 95% CI - 19.89 To - 12.55, p < 0.00001), reduce the score of fibroid symptoms (MD - 3.03, 95% CI - 3.45 to - 2.60, p < 0.00001), improve the treatment efficiency (RR: 0.19, 95% CI: 0.13 to 0.25, p < 0.00001), and likely do not affect the estrogen level.

Keywords: acupuncture; complementary therapy; meta-analysis; systematic review; uterine fibroid.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Flowchart of the literature review and selection process.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Risk of bias domain for each included study.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Risk of bias summary.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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