Insights & Discussion
Acupuncture may be effective and safe for short-term pain reduction and functional improvement in hand-and-wrist conditions.
In the 10 included RCTs (622 participants), 6 had a low risk of bias. For cryotherapy-induced pain, 1 trial showed significant pain reduction post treatment. For rheumatoid arthritis, 1 trial shown significant pain reduction and function improvements post treatment and short-term. For carpal tunnel syndrome, 1 trial showed significant pain reduction and functional improvements intermediate-term, while 3 trials suggested no significant difference. For tenosynovitis, 1 trial showed significant pain reduction and function improvements short-term. For poststroke impairments, 1 trial showed significant function improvements post treatment and at short-term, while another trial suggested no significant difference. No significant improvements were noted for trapezio-metacarpal joint osteoarthritis. In 2 trials, adverse effects occurred in patients with carpal tunnel syndrome; yet acupuncture appeared to be relatively safe.
Discover Related Insights
A meta-analysis of acupuncture versus steroid block therapy favored acupuncture in terms of responder rate.
2010 The Journal of Pain Acupuncture for Carpal Tunnel Syndrome: A Systematic Review of Randomized Controlled Trials Lee, H., Shim, H., Shin, B., et al.
Systematic Review Carpal Tunnel Syndrome
Our systematic review and meta-analysis demonstrate that the evidence for acupuncture as a symptomatic therapy of carpal tunnel syndrome is encouraging but not convincing. The total number of included RCTs and their methodological quality were low. Further rigorous studies are required to establish whether acupuncture has therapeutic value for this indication.