Efficacy and Safety of Acupuncture and or Moxibustion for Managing Primary Dysmenorrhea: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Liu, Weiting; Wang, Carol; Lee, Khui Hung; Ma, Xiaopeng; Kang, Timothy Leen

doi:10.1177/10547738221086984

Cited by 6 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 38 publications

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“…Reported adverse outcomes like little bleeding, hematoma, bruises, dizziness or fainting are mild and harmless. Serious side effects were not observed [10,13]. To summarize, acupuncture could potentially be an effective and safe method of treatment for PD, but more thorough clinical research and better quality of evidence are needed to prove it [1,2,10].…”

Section: Acupuncturementioning

confidence: 97%

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The non-pharmacological treatment of primary dysmenorrhea - efficiency and safety

Zapała,

Ząber,

Gacoń

et al. 2023

J Educ Health Sport

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Primary dysmenorrhea is the most common, though often underdiagnosed, gynecological disorder of women of reproductive age. The disease presents with painful abdominal cramps associated with menstrual bleeding in the absence of pelvic abnormalities. Symptoms are caused primarily by increased levels of prostaglandins produced by the endometrium, which provides hypercontraction of the uterine muscles, ischemia, and pain. Dysmenorrhea is usually treated pharmacologically with non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs or hormonal contraception. In particularly severe cases, surgical treatment is also possible. Nonetheless, an increasing amount of studies on non-pharmacological treatments have been published recently. Methods like Transcutaneous Electrical Nerve Stimulation (TENS), acupuncture, continuous topical heat, or exercise and yoga seem to be effective in reducing the symptoms of primary dysmenorrhea. All have an anti-inflammatory effect by lowering prostaglandin levels, but they also contribute to reducing symptoms through other mechanisms. TENS elevates the pain threshold and, together with acupuncture, causes the release of endogenous opioids. Heat, yoga, and acupuncture also lead to increased blood flow in the uterus, reducing hypoxia. Their additional advantage is the low cost and ease of self-use, except for acupuncture, depending on the patient's needs. Side effects of non-pharmacological treatments are usually mild and rarely reported.

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Section: Acupuncturementioning

confidence: 97%

“…However, a recent meta-analysis shows that acupuncture can remarkably reduce pain and may be an effective option for PD, but the level of certainty was moderate [13]. Reported adverse outcomes like little bleeding, hematoma, bruises, dizziness or fainting are mild and harmless.…”

Section: Acupuncturementioning

confidence: 99%

The non-pharmacological treatment of primary dysmenorrhea - efficiency and safety

Zapała,

Ząber,

Gacoń

et al. 2023

J Educ Health Sport

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“…The copyright holder for this preprint this version posted April 1, 2024. ; https://doi.org/10.1101/2024.03.30.24305112 doi: medRxiv preprint acupuncture therapy, 34 acupressure, 35 aromatherapy, 17 exercise, 23 TENS, 36 physiotherapy, 37 psychological intervention, 20 manual therapy, 38 moxibustion, 39 nutritional therapy, 25 non-invasive brain stimulation, used as treatment will be included. 40 No restrictions will be placed on the intervention timing (pre-menstrual, menstrual period, post-menstrual), courses, or delivery form (researchers, self, or device).…”

Section: (Which Was Not Certified By Peer Review)mentioning

confidence: 99%

Comparative effectiveness of non-pharmacological interventions for primary dysmenorrhea: A protocol for a systematic review and network meta-analysis

Bao,

Yao,

et al. 2024

Preprint

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Introduction Primary dysmenorrhea (PD) is the most common gynecological condition among young women. Although several non-pharmacological interventions have proven effective in relieving pain in patients with PD, the optimal treatment remains unknown. This systematic review and network meta-analysis (NMA) will aim to compare and rank the analgesic effects of different non-drug interventions for PD. Methods and analysis Randomized controlled trials of non-pharmacological interventions for PD will be identified via a search of the PubMed, Cochrane Library, Web of Science, and Embase databases until May 2024. The primary outcome will be change in pain intensity among patients with PD, while the secondary outcomes include health-related quality of life and symptoms of depression and anxiety. Two independent reviewers will perform document screening, study selection, and data extraction. The methodological quality of the included studies will be assessed using the Cochrane Risk of Bias tool (V. 2). The RevMan, Stata, and Aggregate Data Drug Information System software will be used to perform a pairwise meta-analysis and Bayesian NMA in a random-effects model. The certainty of the evidence will be rated using the Grading of Recommendations, Assessment, Development, and Evaluation System.

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“…Acupuncture is commonly used as an alternative treatment for PD because of its efficacy and safety [ 6 ]. Available studies have indicated that acupuncture treats PD by regulating endocrine and analgesic substances, modulating immune-inflammatory responses, improving uterine blood flow, and reducing oxidative stress [ 7 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Revealing the Central Mechanism of Acupuncture for Primary Dysmenorrhea Based on Neuroimaging: A Narrative Review

Chen

Guo

Zhang

et al. 2023

Pain Research and Management

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Objective. The central mechanism of acupuncture for primary dysmenorrhea was explored by summarizing the changes in different regional networks of the brain induced by acupuncture stimulation by analyzing the existing studies. Methods. The original studies were collected and selected from three English databases such as PubMed and four Chinese databases as China Knowledge Network (CNKI). The main keyword clusters are neuroimaging, acupuncture, and primary dysmenorrhea. Results. The literature review yielded 130 possibly qualified studies, and 23 articles fulfilled the criteria for inclusion. Regarding the type of acupuncture studies, 6 moxibustion studies and 17 manual acupuncture studies for primary dysmenorrhea were included. Based on functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), perfusion-weighted imaging (PWI), and positron emission tomography-computer tomography techniques (PET-CT), one or more analysis methods such as amplitude of low-frequency fluctuations (ALFF), regional homogeneity (ReHo), functional connectivity (FC), and independent components analysis (ICA) were used. The results are summarized. To summarize the high-frequency brain area alterations observed in patients with acupuncture-induced primary dysmenorrhea were the anterior cingulate gyrus, thalamus, insula, precentral gyrus, middle frontal gyrus, postcentral gyrus, putamen, and cerebellum. Conclusion. The results suggest that the mechanism of acupuncture in the treatment of primary dysmenorrhea is the involvement of networks regulating different areas of the brain in the analgesic effects of acupuncture. The brain regions involved in primary dysmenorrhea acupuncture analgesia were mainly located in the pain matrix, default mode network, salience network, and limbic system.

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Efficacy and Safety of Acupuncture and or Moxibustion for Managing Primary Dysmenorrhea: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Cited by 6 publications

References 38 publications

The non-pharmacological treatment of primary dysmenorrhea - efficiency and safety

The non-pharmacological treatment of primary dysmenorrhea - efficiency and safety

Comparative effectiveness of non-pharmacological interventions for primary dysmenorrhea: A protocol for a systematic review and network meta-analysis

Revealing the Central Mechanism of Acupuncture for Primary Dysmenorrhea Based on Neuroimaging: A Narrative Review

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