Electroacupuncture for postoperative pain in mixed hemorrhoids: A meta-analysis

To investigate the efficacy of electroacupuncture for postoperative pain in mixed hemorrhoids. METHODS: Randomized controlled trials were searched in PubMed and Cochrane Library. The risk of bias assessment tool was used to assess methodological quality. Stata 14.0 software was used for meta-analysis. Weighted mean differences were calculated if all outcome variables were reported the same way, while standardized mean differences (SMD) were calculated if they were different. RESULTS: From 27 identified studies, 5 Chinese studies (465 patients) were included in this meta-analysis. The electroacupuncture group had significantly lower postoperative pain scores compared with the control group at 6 hours postoperatively (SMD = –0.89, 95% CI: –1.091 to –0.692; P < .001), at 12 hours postoperatively (SMD = –1.089, 95% CI: –1.336 to –0.843; P < .001), at 24 hours postoperatively (SMD = –0.548, 95% CI: –0.721 to –0.374; P = .547), and 72 hours postoperatively (SMD = –1.089, 95% CI: –1.336 to –0.843; P < .001). CONCLUSION: Electroacupuncture can improve pain after surgery for mixed hemorrhoids. It is an effective method to improve the pain after hemorrhoidectomy, which deserves further research and promotion.