Acupuncture for reduction of opioid consumption in chronic pain: A systematic review and meta-analysis protocol

BACKGROUND: This review aims to evaluate the effectiveness and safety of acupuncture treatment for reducing opioid consumption in patients with chronic pain. METHODS: We will search the following electronic databases from their inception to November 2019: MEDLINE, EMBASE, the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, the Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature, the Allied and Complementary Medicine Database, the China National Knowledge Infrastructure (a Chinese database), the Japan Science and Technology Information Aggregator (a Japanese database), and five Korean databases (KoreaMed, Research Information Service System, Korean Studies Information Service System, Database Periodical Information Academic, and Oriental Medicine Advanced Searching Integrated System). Randomized controlled trials comparing acupuncture to no treatment, sham acupuncture, and other active interventions for the reduction of opioid consumption in chronic pain patients will be included. The risk of bias will be assessed using the Cochrane risk of bias tool. The primary outcomes will include the prescribed or consumed dose of opioids and withdrawal symptoms related to opioid reduction. A meta-analysis will be performed to estimate a pooled effect, if possible. CONCLUSION: This study may provide important practical guidance for patients, practitioners, and health-policy makers regarding the use of acupuncture in opioid taper support programs. DISSEMINATION: The results will be disseminated through a peer-reviewed journal or conference presentations. Trial registration number: PROSPERO 2019: CRD42019143486