scholarly journals Efficacy of Massage Therapy on Pain and Dysfunction in Patients with Neck Pain: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

2014 ◽  
Vol 2014 ◽  
pp. 1-13 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yong Hong Cheng ◽  
Gui Cheng Huang

Objective. To systematically evaluate the evidence of whether massage therapy (MT) is effective for neck pain.Methods. Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) were identified through searches of 5 English and Chinese databases (to December 2012). The search terms included neck pain, neck disorders, cervical vertebrae, massage, manual therapy, Tuina, and random. In addition, we performed hand searches at the library of Nanjing University of Traditional Chinese Medicine. Two reviewers independently abstracted data and assessed the methodological quality of RCTs by PEDro scale. And the meta-analyses of improvements on pain and neck-related function were conducted.Results. Fifteen RCTs met inclusion criteria. The meta-analysis showed that MT experienced better immediate effects on pain relief compared with inactive therapies (n=153; standardised mean difference (SMD), 1.30; 95% confidence interval (CI), 0.09 to 2.50;P=0.03) and traditional Chinese medicine (n=125; SMD, 0.73; 95% CI 0.13 to 1.33;P=0.02). There was no valid evidence of MT on improving dysfunction. With regard to follow-up effects, there was not enough evidence of MT for neck pain.Conclusions. This systematic review found moderate evidence of MT on improving pain in patients with neck pain compared with inactive therapies and limited evidence compared with traditional Chinese medicine. There were no valid lines of evidence of MT on improving dysfunction. High quality RCTs are urgently needed to confirm these results and continue to compare MT with other active therapies for neck pain.

PLoS ONE ◽  
2015 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. e0117146 ◽  
Author(s):  
Qi-ling Yuan ◽  
Tuan-mao Guo ◽  
Liang Liu ◽  
Fu Sun ◽  
Yin-gang Zhang

2016 ◽  
Vol 39 (5) ◽  
pp. 1955-1963 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jianchun Huang ◽  
Xiaojun Tang ◽  
Fangxing Ye ◽  
Junhui He ◽  
Xiaolong Kong

Background/Aims: Coronary heart disease is characterized by vascular stenosis or occlusion resulting in myocardial ischemia, hypoxia and necrosis. In China, the combination of aspirin and Fufang Danshen Diwan (FDD), a traditional Chinese medicine formula, has been suggested in the treatment of coronary heart disease. There have been several studies comparing the effectiveness of aspirin alone and in combination with FDD to treat coronary artery disease; however, it remains unclear whether combined aspirin therapy is superior. This study was thus designed to clarify this issue through a systematic review and meta-analysis. Methods: Databases including PubMed, EMBASE, China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI) database, Wanfang Data and VIP Information were searched. Papers were reviewed systematically by two researchers and analyzed using Cochrane software Revman 5.1. Results: Fourteen randomized controlled trials enrolling 1367 subjects were included. Meta-analyses revealed that aspirin in combination with FDD was significantly more effective at alleviating angina pectoris and improving electrocardiogram (ECG) results relative to aspirin therapy alone, reflected by the summary effects for the clinical markedly effective (OR = 2.45; 95% CI 1.95-3.08) and the total effective (OR = 3.92; 95% CI 2.87-5.36) rates. In addition, combined aspirin and FDD was significantly more efficacious than aspirin monotherapy at improving blood lipid levels, as indicated by the following outcomes: 1) reduction of TC level (SMD −1.12; 95% CI −1.49 to −0.76); 2) reduction of TG level (SMD −0.94; 95% CI −1.15 to -0.74); 3) reduction of LDL level (SMD -0.68; 95% CI -0.88 to -0.48); and 4) improvement of HDL level (SMD 0.52; 95% CI 0.04 to 0.99 ). No serious adverse events were reported in any of the included trials. Conclusion: The present meta-analysis demonstrated that aspirin in combination with FDD was more effective than aspirin alone for treating coronary heart disease. More full-scale randomized clinical trials with reliable designs are recommended to further evaluate the clinical benefits and long-term effectiveness of FDD for the treatment of coronary heart disease.


Circulation ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 142 (Suppl_3) ◽  
Author(s):  
suvash shrestha ◽  
David DeLurgio ◽  
Andy Kiser ◽  
Saumil Oza ◽  
Yisachar Greenberg ◽  
...  

Introduction: Hybrid convergent epicardial/endocardial ablation was developed in response to the limited effectiveness of endocardial catheter ablation for persistent (PersAF) and longstanding PersAF (LSPAF). The objective of this study was to perform a systematic review and meta-analysis of reported safety and efficacy outcomes with convergent procedures. Methods: Predefined search terms were used in PubMed; the initial search was performed in June 2019 and updated in May 2020. Abstracts and full text in English were reviewed for peer-reviewed, primary clinical studies of hybrid convergent procedures in PersAF/LSPAF. Meta-analysis was performed with using a random effects model with a restricted maximum likelihood estimator and forest plots. Heterogeneity was tested using Cochran’s Q-test. Results: The updated search yielded 325 unique results. Two articles from meta-analyses were added. Nineteen articles met inclusion with safety and/or efficacy data. Three overlapping studies were excluded. Results from the randomized CONVERGE trial were added, for a total of 1084 patients in 17 studies; 94% had PersAF or LSPAF. The 30-day major adverse event rate was 3.1% (95% CI 1.9% - 4.3%; n=1084; 17 studies), excluding pericardial effusions (PE) (non-emergent inflammatory response) and 5.1% (95% CI 3.6% - 6.6%) overall. The PEs may be mitigated by anti-inflammatory prophylaxis, pericardial drainage and appropriate patient monitoring. Freedom from AF/atrial arrhythmia at one year or later was 75.0% (95% CI 66.0%-83.9%; n=805; 14 studies) regardless of anti-arrhythmic drugs (AAD) and 64.9% (95% CI 54.7%-75.1%; n=494; 8 studies) off AADs/ absent increased dosage of failed AADs. Heterogeneity across studies was detected for effectiveness (p<0.0001), but not for safety (p=0.12). Conclusions: This meta-analysis shows high efficacy of hybrid convergent ablation at one year, even off AADs, and a reasonable safety in mostly persistent or long-standing persistent AF.


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