Efficacy and safety of acupuncture in postoperative ileus after gynecological surgery: A protocol for system review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials

BACKGROUND: Acupuncture is widely used in treatment of postoperative ileus (POI), but the safety and efficacy of acupuncture in POI after gynecological surgery still lack of evidence-based basis. METHODS: PubMed, CINAHL, EMBASE, Web of science, Google Scholar, Wangfang database, Chinese Biomedical Literature Database (SinoMed), Chinese Science and Technology Periodical Database, and China National Knowledge Infrastructure database will be searched until December 31, 2020. Two independent investigators will screen the relevant randomized controlled trials from Data one by one by using prespecified criteria. The relevant data from included studies will be extracted and analyzed by using RevMan V.5.3 software. Quality of the included studies will be estimated by using the Cochrane Collaboration risk of bias tool, and publication bias will be assessed by using Egger test and Begg test. In addition, quality of evidence will be evaluated by using Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development, and Evaluation. RESULTS: We will analyze the effect of acupuncture on time to first flatus and time to bowel sound recovery as the primary outcomes of this review. Meanwhile, frequency of bowel sounds, time to defecation, time of hospital stay, biochemical indicators related to gastrointestinal motility, inflammation factors, responder rate, and adverse events for patients receiving gynecological surgery. CONCLUSION: Our findings will benefit researchers and provide reference for the treatment and prevention of POI for the patients undergoing gynecological surgery.