Journal of Pain Research (Mar 2023)
A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis Protocol to Establish How Common Clinical Acupoint Stimulation-Related Therapies Should Be Used for Managing Insomnia
Abstract
Pei Guo,1,* Mingmin Xu,2,* Jiongwei Pan,2 Jiayi Lin,2 Tiannuo Hu,2 Yulong Wei,3 Yue Chen,3 Yu Guo2,4 1School of Clinical Medicine, Chengdu University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Chengdu City, People’s Republic of China; 2School of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Jinan University, Guangzhou City, People’s Republic of China; 3School of Acupuncture–Moxibustion and Tuina, Beijing University of Chinese Medicine, Beijing City, People’s Republic of China; 4Guangzhou Key Laboratory of Formula-Pattern of Traditional Chinese Medicine, School of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Jinan University, Guangzhou City, People’s Republic of China*These authors contributed equally to this workCorrespondence: Yu Guo, School of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Jinan University, No. 601 Huangpu Road West, Tianhe District, Guangzhou City, People’s Republic of China, Email [email protected]: Many studies have now investigated the effects of common clinical acupoint stimulation-related therapies (ASRTs) following the meridian theory of traditional Chinese medicine for the management of insomnia. However, ASRT choice is currently based on personal clinical experience or patient preference. This study will review the common ASRTs reported in clinical trials and analyze their efficacy and safety for managing insomnia with or without co-morbidities.Methods: English and Chinese databases will be thoroughly searched, and other potentially eligible trials will be obtained by reviewing reference lists of identified studies and previous reviews. Only randomized controlled trials (RCTs) of common clinical ASRTs to manage insomnia published in peer-reviewed journals will be considered. Sleep quality questionnaires or indices will be considered as the main outcome, while the secondary outcomes will include sleep parameters, daytime dysfunction, quality of life, and adverse effects. Two reviewers will independently investigate eligible RCTs, extract information, analyze their methodological quality, and employ Grading of Recommendations, Assessment, Development and Evaluation (GRADE) criteria to evaluate the strength of the evidence. The treatment impact of various ASRTs will be calculated using meta-analysis techniques, and the degree of study heterogeneity will be assessed using Cochrane’s Q and I-squared statistics. Subgroup and sensitivity analyses will be used to evaluate the reliability of the results.Results: Our systematic review and meta-analysis will present up-to-date evidence on: 1) which common clinical ASRTs are beneficial for the management of insomnia; and 2) whether the effects of common clinical ASRTs on insomnia vary depending on clinical, participant, and treatment characteristics.Conclusion: The results of our review should help decision-makers make educated choices regarding evidence-based non-pharmacological management options for insomnia.Study Registration: The International Platform of Registered Systematic Review and Meta-analysis (INPLASY), record INPLASY2021120137.Keywords: acupoint stimulation-related therapies, insomnia, systematic review and meta-analysis, randomized controlled trial, protocol
