The efficacy and safety of acupuncture in nonalcoholic fatty liver disease A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials

Abstract

Background: The aim of this study was to determine the efficacy and safety of acupuncture treatment (AT) or acupuncture plus conventional medicine (CM) versus CM alone using a meta-analysis of all published randomized controlled trials (RCTs) for nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). Methods: Eight databases were searched independently from inception to April 30, 2020. RCTs were included if they contained reports on the use acupuncture or the use of acupuncture combined with CM and compared with the use of CM. Summary odds ratio (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were used to calculate the overall clinical efficacy. Secondary outcomes, namely aspartate aminotransferase, alanine aminotransferase, total cholesterol, triglyceride, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, and body mass index, were calculated by mean difference with 95% CIs. Results: After the final screening, 8 RCTs with 939 patients were included. This meta-analysis showed that AT was superior to CM in improving overall clinical efficacy (OR=3.19, 95% CI: 2.06-4.92, P