Reporting items for systematic reviews and meta-analyses of acupuncture: the PRISMA for acupuncture checklist

Abstract

Background Acupuncture is widely used worldwide, and systematic reviews on acupuncture are increasingly being published. Although acupuncture systematic reviews share several essential elements with other systematic reviews, some essential information for the application of acupuncture is not covered by the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) statement. Considering this, we aimed to develop an extension of the PRISMA statement for acupuncture systematic reviews. Methods We used the PRISMA statement as a starting point, and conducted this study referring to the development strategy recommended by the EQUATOR network. The initial items were collected through a wide survey among evidence users and a review of relevant studies. We conducted a three-round Delphi survey and one-day face-to-face meeting to select items and formulate the checklist. After the consensus meeting, we drafted the manuscript (including the checklist) and sent it to our advisory experts for comments, following which the checklist was refined and circulated to a group of acupuncture systematic review authors for pilot test. We also selected a sample of acupuncture systematic reviews published in 2017 to test the checklist. Results A checklist of five new sub-items (including sub items) and six modified items was formulated, involving content related to title, rationale, eligibility criteria, literature search, data extraction, and study characteristics. We clarified the rationales of the items and provided examples for each item for additional guidance. Conclusion The PRISMA for Acupuncture checklist is developed for improving the reporting of systematic reviews of acupuncture interventions. Trial registration We have registered the study on the EQUATOR network ( http://www.equator-network.org/library/reporting-guidelines-under-development/#91 ). Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (10.1186/s12906-019-2624-3) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Reporting quality of systematic reviews with Moxibustion

“…Therefore, except for continuously improved the completeness reporting of the PRISMA checklist, a series of standard reporting items especially for moxibustion SRs should be developed as an extension for the PRISMA. With the PRISMA extension for acupuncture and Chinese herbal medicines have been published and developed [29,23], the speci c guideline for moxibustion is really helpful to supplement the SRs with CM interventions. Our group has registered this reporting guideline on the EQUATOR (Enhancing the QUAlity and Transparency Of health Research), and has initiated the related work [30].…”

Effectiveness and Safety of Acupuncture for Migraine: An Overview of Systematic Reviews

“…(3) PRISMA-A statements an extension of PRISMA especially for acupuncture, which was published in 2019 [22]. It consists of a 27-item checklist and a 4phase flow diagram, aiming to help authors improve the reporting quality of SRs on acupuncture interventions.…”

Reporting quality of systematic reviews with moxibustion

“…Therefore, except for continuously improved the completeness reporting of the PRISMA checklist, a series of standard reporting items especially for moxibustion SRs should be developed as an extension for the PRISMA. With the PRISMA extensions for acupuncture and Chinese herbal medicines have been published [29,30], the specific guideline for moxibustion is helpful to supplement the SRs with CM interventions. Our group has registered this reporting guideline on the Enhancing the QUAlity and Transparency Of health Research (EQUATOR) under the item of "PRISMA for traditional Chinese medicine", and has initiated the related work [31].…”