PURPOSE: Acupuncture has been used as a complementary medical treatment for arthralgia and other types of pain. The objective of this review is to assess the effectiveness of acupuncture in the treatment of arthralgia in patients with breast cancer who were treated with aromatase inhibitors (AIs). METHODS: A literature search was performed, without language restrictions, of 10 databases from their inception through February 2014. The literature reviewed included randomized clinical trials (RCTs) and clinical trials that compared real versus sham acupuncture for the treatment of AI-related musculoskeletal symptoms (AIMSS). The methodologic quality of these trials was assessed by using the modified Jadad Quality Scale. Meta-analytic software (RevMan 5.0) was used to analyze the data. RESULTS: Five To compare the effects of real versus sham acupuncture, five RCTs were assessed by meta-analysis and quality analysis. Three of the RCTs reported favorable effects with regard to use of acupuncture in reducing pain and joint-related symptoms, while the other two RCTs did not. The meta-analysis showed trends toward reduced pain and stiffness in patients given acupuncture compared with those who received sham treatment (n=82; pain, mean difference: -2.07 [95% confidence interval (CI), -4.72 to 0.57]; p=0.12; stiffness, mean difference: -86.10 [95% CI, -249.11 to 76.92]; p=0.30), although these differences were not statistically significant. CONCLUSIONS: Acupuncture has been reported as a safe and promising treatment for AIMSS, but the present analysis indicated that the effects were not statistically significant. Other outcome measurements, such as imaging studies, would be worth including in future studies to further confirm the efficacy of acupuncture in AIMSS.
PURPOSE: Acupuncture has been used as a complementary medical treatment for arthralgia and other types of pain. The objective of this review is to assess the effectiveness of acupuncture in the treatment of arthralgia in patients with breast cancer who were treated with aromatase inhibitors (AIs). METHODS: A literature search was performed, without language restrictions, of 10 databases from their inception through February 2014. The literature reviewed included randomized clinical trials (RCTs) and clinical trials that compared real versus sham acupuncture for the treatment of AI-related musculoskeletal symptoms (AIMSS). The methodologic quality of these trials was assessed by using the modified Jadad Quality Scale. Meta-analytic software (RevMan 5.0) was used to analyze the data. RESULTS: Five To compare the effects of real versus sham acupuncture, five RCTs were assessed by meta-analysis and quality analysis. Three of the RCTs reported favorable effects with regard to use of acupuncture in reducing pain and joint-related symptoms, while the other two RCTs did not. The meta-analysis showed trends toward reduced pain and stiffness in patients given acupuncture compared with those who received sham treatment (n=82; pain, mean difference: -2.07 [95% confidence interval (CI), -4.72 to 0.57]; p=0.12; stiffness, mean difference: -86.10 [95% CI, -249.11 to 76.92]; p=0.30), although these differences were not statistically significant. CONCLUSIONS: Acupuncture has been reported as a safe and promising treatment for AIMSS, but the present analysis indicated that the effects were not statistically significant. Other outcome measurements, such as imaging studies, would be worth including in future studies to further confirm the efficacy of acupuncture in AIMSS.
Authors: Claire A McManus; Rosa N Schnyer; Jian Kong; Long T Nguyen; Bong Hyun Nam; Rose Goldman; William B Stason; Ted J Kaptchuk Journal: Acupunct Med Date: 2007-06 Impact factor: 2.267
Authors: Jun J Mao; Sharon X Xie; John T Farrar; Carrie T Stricker; Marjorie A Bowman; Deborah Bruner; Angela DeMichele Journal: Eur J Cancer Date: 2013-10-24 Impact factor: 9.162
Authors: F Salaffi; G Leardini; B Canesi; A Mannoni; A Fioravanti; R Caporali; G Lapadula; L Punzi Journal: Osteoarthritis Cartilage Date: 2003-08 Impact factor: 6.576
Authors: Katherine D Crew; Jillian L Capodice; Heather Greenlee; Arlyn Apollo; Judith S Jacobson; George Raptis; Kimberly Blozie; Alex Sierra; Dawn L Hershman Journal: J Cancer Surviv Date: 2007-10-12 Impact factor: 4.442
Authors: Arlene Chan; R De Boer; A Gan; P Willsher; R Martin; Y Zissiadis; K Miller; A Bauwens; D Hastrich Journal: Support Care Cancer Date: 2017-07-09 Impact factor: 3.603
Authors: Alice C Shapiro; Susan A Adlis; Kim Robien; Mark N Kirstein; Shuang Liang; Sara A Richter; Rachel E Lerner Journal: Breast Cancer Res Treat Date: 2016-02-11 Impact factor: 4.872
Authors: Yihan He; Yihong Liu; Brian H May; Anthony Lin Zhang; Haibo Zhang; ChuanJian Lu; Lihong Yang; Xinfeng Guo; Charlie Changli Xue Journal: BMJ Open Date: 2017-12-10 Impact factor: 2.692