RESEARCH ARTICLE


Efficacy of Acupuncture for the Treatment of Fibromyalgia: Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Randomized Trials



Eva Martin-Sancheza, Eva Torralbaa, Elena Díaz-Domíngueza, Andrés Barrigab, Jose Luis R Martin*, a, c
a Department of Clinical Research, Castile-La Mancha Health Research Foundation (FISCAM), Toledo, Spain
b Department of Orthopedic Surgery and Traumatology, National Hospital for Paraplegics. Toledo, Spain
c Department of Applied Research. National Hospital for Paraplegics, Toledo, Spain


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Creative Commons License
© Martin-Sanchez et al.; Licensee Bentham Open.

open-access license: This is an open access article licensed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/3.0/) which permits unrestricted, non-commercial use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the work is properly cited.

* Address correspondence to this author at the Castile-La Mancha Health Research Foundation (FISCAM), Edificio Bulevar, C/ Berna 2, Local 0-2, 45003 – Toledo, Castilla-La Mancha, Spain; Tel: +34 925281144; Fax: +34 925281149; E-mail: jlrmartin@jccm.es


Abstract

Objective:

The study sought to ascertain the effectiveness of acupuncture as a treatment for fibromyalgia

Materials and Methods:

The following electronic databases were searched: PubMed; The Cochrane Library (CENTRAL); EMBASE; CINAHL; and Pascal Biomed (last date of search: January 2008). We analyzed pain intensity and patient withdrawals prior to termination of the study. A meta-analysis was performed, and a weighted global effect obtained using the inverse of variance.

Results:

This review covered a total of 6 studies (323 subjects). No statistically significant differences were observed in terms of pain intensity (VAS): 0.02 (-0.24 a 0.28) or withdrawals: RR 0.91 (0.53 a 1.58)

Conclusion:

This systematic review found no evidence of benefit resulting from acupuncture versus placebo, as a treatment for fibromyalgia.

Keywords: Acupuncture, fibromyalgia, systematic review, meta-analysis..