Effect of Acupuncture on Polycystic Ovary Syndrome in Animal Models: Study Protocol for a Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis
Abstract Background: Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is one of the most common endocrine disorders among women of reproductive age. As a widely used complementary and alternative therapy, acupuncture is increasingly used to treat PCOS. However, the effect of acupuncture in treating PCOS is uncertain and the mechanisms are unclear. This systematic review aims to determine the efficacy of acupuncture on PCOS in animal preclinical models.Methods: We will search the following databases: PubMed, Web of Science, China National Knowledge Infrastructure and Chinese Science and Technology Periodical Database. We will only include animal experiments of acupuncture in treating PCOS. The primary outcome will be homeostatic model assessment- insulin resistance. The risk of bias will be assessed using the Systematic Review Centre for Laboratory Animal Experimentation (SYRCLE) risk of bias tool. Confidence in the cumulative evidence will be assessed using the Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and Evaluation (GRADE) approach. All meta-analyses will be conducted using Review Manager 5.4. Discussion: To the best of our knowledge, the use of acupuncture in treating PCOS has not yet been systematically reviewed in animal models. The evidence generated from this systematic review and meta-analysis could benefit future researches. Systematic review registration: OSF (Registration DOI: 10.17605/OSF.IO/FNM37)