Acupotomy therapy for lumbar disc herniation: Protocol for a systematic review and meta-analysis

BACKGROUND: Lumbar disc herniation (LDH) is a clinically common degenerative spinal disease that adversely affects patients’ quality of life and work ability. Although several articles have reported that acupotomy can improve the clinical symptoms of LDH, the efficiency of acupotomy has not been scientifically or methodically evaluated. The primary objective of this study is to evaluate and synthesize evidence on the effectiveness and safety of acupotomy therapy in patients with LDH. METHOD: We plan to search eight English and Chinese electronic databases, including the Web of Science, Cochrane Library, PubMed, EMBASE, SinoMed, Wanfang, China Science and Technology Journal (VIP), and China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI) databases, for potentially eligible studies. Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) on acupotomy treatment in LDH patients will be searched for independently by 2 reviewers in the databases from their inception to August 2018. We will combine data from clinically homogenous studies in a fixed effect meta-analysis using RevManV.5.3.5, and the evidence level will be assessed by using the method for Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development, and Evaluation (GRADE). RESULTS: This systematic review and meta-analysis will use high-quality evidence-based medicine to assess the efficacy and safety of acupotomy therapy in LDH. CONCLUSION: This study protocol will provide strong evidence to determine whether acupotomy therapy is an effective and safe intervention for patients with LDH.