Acupuncture therapy is more effective than artificial tears for dry eye syndrome: evidence based on a meta-analysis

Lei Yang, Zongguo Yang, Hong Yu, Hui Song, Lei Yang, Zongguo Yang, Hong Yu, Hui Song

Abstract

Background. The efficacy of acupuncture in dry eye syndrome patients remains controversial. Methods. Pubmed, Ovid, Cochrane libraries, CNKI, Wanfang, and CQVIP databases were electronically searched until October 1, 2014. Outcomes including tear break-up time (BUT), Schirmer I test (SIT), and cornea fluorescein staining (CFS) were analyzed. A meta-analysis was performed using both fixed- and random-effects models based on heterogeneity across studies. Results. Seven studies were included in this study; 198 and 185 patients were randomly treated with acupuncture and artificial tears, respectively. The overall BUT of patients in acupuncture group was significantly longer than that of the artificial tears group after treatment (P < 0.00001). The SIT was significantly higher in the acupuncture group than that in the artificial tears group after treatment (P = 0.001). The CFS of patients in acupuncture group was significantly improved compared to that in artificial group (P < 0.0001). Conclusions. Acupuncture therapy is effective for the dry eye patients, partly better than artificial tear treatment.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Flow diagram of the study selection process.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Risk of bias assessment. (a) Risk of bias graph: review authors' judgements about each risk of bias item presented as percentages across all included studies. (b) Risk of bias summary: review authors' judgements about each risk of bias item for each included study.
Figure 3
Figure 3
BUT comparison between acupuncture and artificial tears (AT) treatment for dry eye syndrome.
Figure 4
Figure 4
SIT comparison between acupuncture and artificial tears (AT) treatment for dry eye syndrome.
Figure 5
Figure 5
CFS comparison between acupuncture and artificial tears (AT) treatment for dry eye syndrome.

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