Authors' objectives:

The aim of this systematic review was to provide a comprehensive assessment of the effectiveness of acupuncture for the treatment and rehabilitation of accident-related musculoskeletal disorders.

Authors' recommendations: Given the very small number of eligible RCTs identified, and their heterogeneity, it is not possible for this review to reach any strong conclusions about the effectiveness of acupuncture for the treatment and rehabilitation of musculoskeletal injuries. Acupuncture is considered by practitioners to be useful for treating a wide range of musculoskeletal disorders, including many common disorders thought to be caused primarily by injury. However, RCTs have investigated acupunctures effectiveness for treating only a very limited subset of these disorders. This may partially reflect a lack of emphasis in traditional acupuncture theory on distinguishing between injury and non-injury-related musculoskeletal disorder. For many acupuncturists, the location and nature of the musculoskeletal pain, along with any associated dysfunction or restriction of movement, appear to be the main criteria used for selecting sites for needle placement and other technical features of acupuncture therapy. Whether or not the condition being treated is the result of injury does not appear to be especially relevant. Another reason why few trials have focused exclusively on injury-related disorders may be the difficulty of reliably identifying the causes of musculoskeletal complaints, or being clear about the extent to which a disorder may be caused by injury as opposed to other factors. Many musculoskeletal disorders, especially those involving chronic pain, may be multi-factorial in origin and have a complex aetiology, such as trauma overlaid with degeneration due to oesteoarthritis or osteoporosis. It is to be hoped that in the future, researchers will give greater priority to conducting trials of needle acupuncture with groups of patients who are all considered to have the same kind of injury-related musculoskeletal disorder. The work to date on lateral elbow pain, limited as it is, helps to show what may be possible. Internationally, similar effort, and more, needs to be put into conducting a range of trials on the other common musculoskeletal injuries that clinical experience suggests are likely to benefit markedly from acupuncture therapy.

Authors' methods: Systematic review

Project Status: Completed

URL for project: http://nzhta.chmeds.ac.nz/publications.htm

Year Published: 2002

English language abstract: An English language summary is available

Publication Type: Not Assigned

Country: New Zealand

Organisation Name: New Zealand Health Technology Assessment

Contact Address: Department of Public Health and General Practice, Christchurch School of Medicine and Health Sciences, University of Otago, P.O. Box 4345, Christchurch, New Zealand. Tel: +64 3 364 1145; Fax: +64 3 364 1152;

Contact Name: nzhta@chmeds.ac.nz

Contact Email: nzhta@chmeds.ac.nz

Copyright: New Zealand Health Technology Assessment (NZHTA)