A Meta-Analysis on the Efficacy of Acupuncture as an Adjuvant Therapy for Schizophrenia

OBJECTIVE: To systematically evaluate the efficacy of acupuncture in the treatment of schizophrenia. METHODS: We searched China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI), Wanfang Database, Chongqing VIP Chinese Science and Technology Periodical Database (VIP), China Biology Medicine Database (CBM), PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, Cochrane Library for relevant literature on the acupuncture treatment of schizophrenia published from database inception to May 17, 2023. The evaluation criteria included total effective rate, incidence of adverse reactions, TESS scale, PANSS scale, BPRS scale, SANA scale, SAPS scale. Two researchers independently screened the literature, extracted data, and assessed the risk of bias of the included studies. The RevMan 5.4 software was used for meta-analysis, risk of bias (ROB) evaluation tool was used to evaluate the risk of bias of the studies, and the GRADE evaluation tool was used to evaluate the quality of evidence. The study was registered on PROSPERO, CRD42023416438. RESULTS: A total of 38 RCTs involving 3143 patients were included in the meta-analysis. The results showed that acupuncture can improve the total effective rate [OR=3.43 (95% CI: 2.71, 4.35), moderate credibility], reduce the incidence of adverse reactions [OR=0.45 (95% CI: 0.32, 0.63), moderate credibility], reduce the TESS score (side effect scale) [MD=−1.83 (95% CI: −2.94, −0.71), very low credibility]. Acupuncture also reduced the PANSS total score [MD=−5.75 (95% CI: −8.08, −3.42), very low credibility], SANA score [MD=−2.66 (95% CI: −6.84, 1.51), very low credibility], SAPS score [MD=−1.26 (95% CI: −2.55, −0.02), very low credibility], and BPRS score [MD=−7.02 (95% CI: −10.59, −3.46), very low credibility]. CONCLUSION: Existing evidence indicates that acupuncture as an adjunctive therapy can improve the total effective rate of SZ patients, reduce the incidence of adverse reactions, improve clinical symptoms, and alleviate depression and anxiety in SZ patients. However, more high-quality clinical research evidence is still needed to support these findings.