Effectiveness of Acupuncture for Scoliosis: A Systematic Review

Abstract

Scoliosis is a 3-dimensional change of the spine, presenting 10° above Cobb angle. Various acupuncture methods are being increasingly performed to correct scoliosis. However, no systematic review has been published. Therefore, we report on the effectiveness of acupuncture on mild scoliosis in this systematic review. We searched various databases for acupuncture treatment for scoliosis published before June 2021. The primary outcome was Cobb angle, and the secondary outcomes were patient-centered scores. Six studies were identified. RCTs that compared combination therapy with acupuncture, and other treatment methods and showed significant improvement in the Cobb angle, and effective rate, but, with low quality evidence. Acupuncture monotherapy resulted in significant improvement in the Cobb angle and had high heterogeneity compared with other treatment methods, but no significant improvement in the effective rate was observed, and the quality of evidence was low. Regardless of the type of scoliosis, acupuncture monotherapy or combination therapy with acupuncture showed significant improvement in the Cobb angle, and the quality of evidence was moderate. No serious adverse events were observed in the 6 studies reviewed. Acupuncture is considered safe, and it is more effective when performed with other conventional treatments.

Keywords

• acupuncture
• scoliosis
• systematic review