Acupuncture Versus Oral Medications for Acute/Subacute Non-Specific Low Back Pain: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

PURPOSE OF REVIEW: Pharmacologic intervention do not always achieve benefits in the treatment of acute/subacute non-specific low back pain (NSLBP). We assessed efficacy and safety of acupuncture for acute/subacute NSLBP as alternative treatment. RECENT FINDINGS: We searched PubMed, Web of Science, Embase, Cochrane Library, Scopus, Epistemonikos, CNKI, Wan Fang Database, VIP database, CBMLD, CSTJ, clinical trials, EUCTR, World WHO ICTRP, and ChiCTR for randomized controlled trials, cross-over studies, and cohort studies of NSLBP treated by acupuncture versus oral medication from inception to 23th April 2022. A total of 6 784 records were identified, and 14 studies were included 1 263 participants in this review. The results of the meta-analysis indicated that acupuncture therapy was slightly more effective than oral medication in improving pain (P < 0.00001, I2 = 92%, MD = -1.17, 95% CI [-1.61, -0.72]). According to the results of the meta-analysis, acupuncture therapy exhibited a significant advantage over oral medication with a substantial effect (P < 0.00001, I2 = 90%, SMD = -1.42, 95% CI [-2.22, -0.62]). Based on the results of the meta-analysis, acupuncture therapy was associated with a 12% improvement rate compared to oral medication in patients with acute/subacute NSLBP (P < 0.0001, I2 = 54%, RR = 1.11, 95% CI [1.05, 1.18]). Acupuncture is more effective and safer than oral medication in treating acute/subacute NSLBP. This systematic review is poised to offer valuable guidance to clinicians treating acute/subacute NSLBP and potentially benefit the afflicted patients. REGISTRATION: This review was registered in PROSPERO ( http://www.crd.york.ac.uk/prospero ) with registration number CRD42021278346.

Plum-blossom needle therapy for Tourette syndrome: A case report.

INTRODUCTION: Tourette syndrome (TS) is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by the childhood onset of motor and phonic tics, frequently accompanied by behavioral and psychiatric comorbidities. Existing treatments for tics raise safety concerns. In China, acupuncture has been a widely utilized approach for TS, and one specific traditional acupuncture method, plum-blossom needle therapy (PBNT), has exhibited favorable tolerance among pediatric patients. In this report, we present a case of TS treated using PBNT. CASE PRESENTATION: An 11-year-old boy diagnosed with Tourette syndrome for over five years presented with frequent loud throat clearing, eye blinking, severe abdominal tensing, shoulder shrugging, and upper limb twitching. Plum-blossom needle therapy (PBNT) was administered for 8 weeks, involving two sessions per week. The boy's tic symptoms gradually ameliorated, ultimately becoming minimal following the 8-week treatment period. Specifically, the Yale Global Tic Severity Scale (YGTSS) score decreased from 71 to 20, and the TS Clinical Global Impression Scale of Improvement (CGI-I) score reached 1, signifying 'very much improved' post-treatment. However, the Children and Adolescents' Quality of Life Scale (CAQOL) score exhibited minimal variation, moving from 146 to 150. CONCLUSION: This case suggests that plum-blossom needle therapy (PBNT) is well-tolerated by children and may be effective in alleviating tics associated with Tourette syndrome (TS). However, further research, particularly large-sample randomized controlled trials, is imperative to establish the efficacy and effectiveness of PBNT.

Acupuncture for Low Back Pain: Reevaluation of Systematic Reviews and Meta-analyses.

PURPOSE OF REVIEW: This overview aims to reevaluate the methodological quality, report quality, and evidence quality of systematic reviews (SRs)/meta-analyses (MAs) of acupuncture for low back pain to determine whether acupuncture effectively treats low back pain (LBP). RECENT FINDINGS: Twenty-three SRs/MAs were deemed eligible for the present overview. The AMSTAR 2 score showed that the methodological quality of one SR/MA was of medium quality, one was of low quality, and 21 were of critically low quality. Based on the results of the PRISMA evaluation, there are certain areas for improvement in the quality of reporting of SRs/MAs. There were some reporting flaws in the topic of search strategy (8/23, 34.78%), certainty assessment (4/23, 17.39%), the certainty of evidence (4/23, 17.39%), registration and protocol (3/23, 13.04%), and availability of data, code, and other material (1/23, 4.35%). Results from the GRADE evaluation indicated that 13 of 255 outcomes were rated as moderate, 88 were low, and 154 were very low. Acupuncture effectively treated LBP in the SRs/MAs included in the reevaluation. However, the methodological, report, and evidence-based quality of the SRs/MAs on acupuncture for LBP was low. Therefore, further rigorous and comprehensive studies are warranted to improve the quality of SRs/MAs in this field.