Effectiveness and Safety of Acupuncture and Moxibustion for Primary Dysmenorrhea: An Overview of Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses

Jun Yang, Jun Xiong, Ting Yuan, Xue Wang, Yunfeng Jiang, Xiaohong Zhou, Kai Liao, Lingling Xu · Evidence-Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine · 2020 April 29

DOI 10.1155/2020/8306165

Objective

The aim of this study was to critically summarize the evidence from relevant SRs and MAs reporting on the efficacy and safety of acupuncture and moxibustion in treatment of PD

Conclusions

Acupuncture and moxibustion seem to be effective and safe approaches in treatment of primary dysmenorrhea; yet, the methodological quality of most of the studies and the quality of evidence were low. Thus, additional studies are required to further confirm these results.

Critical Appraisal

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Insights

The current evidence suggests that acupuncture and moxibustion is more effective than ibuprofen or Fenbid in the treatment of primary dysmenorrhoea.

This overview provided a comprehensive overview of the evidence on the effectiveness and safety of acupuncture and moxibustion for PD. Evidence of moderate quality suggested that acupuncture and moxibustion had a positive effect on indomethacin or Fenbid in treating PD. Low-quality evidence showed that compared to NSAIDs, acupuncture and moxibustion could relieve PD related pain with less adverse effects, which needs to be further researched. The adverse effects related to the acupuncture and moxibustion were mild, and they included dizziness, fainting, or minimal bleeding after acupuncture.