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Integrative/Acupuncture

The Effectiveness and Safety of Acupuncture for Mammary Hyperplasia: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

, , , &
Pages 1761-1772 | Received 28 Jan 2024, Accepted 08 May 2024, Published online: 17 May 2024
 

Abstract

Objective

This study aims to systematically evaluate the effectiveness and safety of acupuncture in treating mammary hyperplasia.

Methods

A comprehensive search was conducted in various databases, including PubMed, Web of Science, Cochrane Library, Embase, SinoMed, China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI), Wanfang, and VIP Database, from their inception until July 2023. Only randomized controlled trials (RCTs) researching the use of acupuncture for mammary hyperplasia were included. Quality assessment and data analysis were performed using RevMan 5.3 software.

Results

Eight RCTs, comprising 573 patients, were included in this analysis. The meta-analysis revealed that in the acupuncture group, the experimental group was better than the control group in improving breast pain, breast lump extent, and the texture of breast lump (P=0.0007, I2=61%; P=0.02, I2=0%; P=0.0002, I2=0%). We found that both could be improved, but after statistical analysis, there was no significant advantage in the acupuncture group compared with the patent Chinese medicine group (p>0.05).

Conclusion

Acupuncture appears to be an effective and safe treatment for mammary hyperplasia, providing pain relief and reducing mass volume, texture, and extent. However, the insufficient quality of the available evidence indicates the need for further methodologically rigorous and convincingly designed studies to determine the efficacy and safety of acupuncture in the treatment of breast hyperplasia.

Disclosure

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

Additional information

Funding

This study was supported by Special Project on Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) heritage of ancient books, literature, and distinctive techniques (GZY-KJS-2022-035), Young doctor scholar project (2022), Capital research and transformation of clinical diagnosis and treatment technology (Z211100002921020), Research project on education and teaching reform at Capital Medical University (2023JYY326).