A systematic review of auricular therapy for poststroke cognitive impairment and dementia: A protocol for systematic review and meta-analysis

Post-stroke cognitive impairment and dementia (PSCID) is the main source of morbidity and mortality after stroke worldwide. It is one consequence of ischemic stroke, intracerebral hemorrhage, or subarachnoid hemorrhage. Cognitive impairment and dementia after the clinical stroke may contribute to the clinical expression of PSCID, which are prevalent clinical symptoms, especially in the elderly. Current problems in the field of PSCID are related to a lack of harmonization of the classification and definition, deficiency of well-defined diagnosis, deficiency of standardized and objective treatment plans, etc. Auricular therapy can effectively improve the symptoms of patients with PSCID. However, there has been no systematic review of auricular therapy for PSCID. This study aimed to evaluate the efficacy and safety of auricular therapy in patients with PSCID. METHODS: Before December 2022, a systematic literature search was conducted using the following databases: PubMed, Embase, SinoMed (previously called the Chinese Biomedical Database), Web of Science, Chinese National Knowledge Infrastructure, and Wanfang Database. Review Manager software (version 5.3) will be used for statistical analysis; otherwise, descriptive analysis or subgroup analysis will be conducted. The quality of evidence for outcomes will be assessed with the Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and Evaluation approach. RESULTS: This meta-analysis further confirmed the beneficial effects of auricular therapy in patients with PSCID. CONCLUSION: This study investigated the efficacy and safety of auricular therapy in patients with PSCID, providing clinicians and patients with additional options for this disease.