ReviewEvidence-based complementary and alternative medicine : eCAM2020
Acupuncture Therapy plus Hyaluronic Acid Injection for Knee Osteoarthritis: A Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials.
Review in Evidence-based complementary and alternative medicine : eCAM, 2020. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 10 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
10 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- Effectiveness of Mobilization with Movement on the Management of Knee Osteoarthritis: A Systematic Review of Randomized Controlled Trials.Pain research & management · 2021Pooled it
- Topical Diclofenac Solution for Osteoarthritis of the Knee: An Updated Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials.BioMed research international · 2020Pooled it
- Long non-coding RNA LINC-PINT: emerging clinical significance and molecular mechanisms in knee osteoarthritis.Journal of orthopaedic surgery and research · 2026Article
- Electroacupuncture alleviates osteoarthritis and is associated with activation of the Nrf2/HO-1 pathway and reduced ferroptosis-related changes.Frontiers in molecular biosciences · 2026Article
- Effective Treatment of Knee Osteoarthritis Using a Nano-Enabled Drug Acupuncture Technology in Mice.Advanced science (Weinheim, Baden-Wurttemberg, Germany) · 2023Article
- Bibliometric analysis of the inflammatory mechanisms in knee osteoarthritis in recent 30 years.American journal of clinical and experimental immunology · 2023Article
- Acupuncture for the Treatment of Knee Osteoarthritis: An Overview of Systematic Reviews.International journal of general medicine · 2021Review
- Efficacy and Safety of Sahastara Remedy Extract Capsule in Primary Knee Osteoarthritis: A Randomized Double-Blinded Active-Controlled Trial.Evidence-based complementary and alternative medicine : eCAM · 2021Article
- Preoperative Predictors of Prolonged Hospital Stay in Accelerated Rehabilitation for Patients Undergoing Orthopedic Surgery.Bioinorganic chemistry and applications · 2021Article
- Research Trends of Acupuncture Therapy on Knee Osteoarthritis from 2010 to 2019: A Bibliometric Analysis.Journal of pain research · 2020Review
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
8 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
objectiveThis meta-analysis aimed to investigate the effectiveness of acupuncture therapy plus hyaluronic acid injection versus hyaluronic acid injection alone for patients with knee osteoarthritis.
methodsRelevant randomized controlled trials that compared the combined effect of acupuncture therapy and hyaluronic acid injection with hyaluronic acid injection alone for knee osteoarthritis patients were included. 10 studies were included in this meta-analysis, and the relative risk (RR) and weight mean difference (MD) with 95% CI for the Lysholm knee score (LKSS), visual analogue scale (VAS), and effective rate (ER) were evaluated by using RevMan 5.3 software. Besides, the bias assessment of the included studies was evaluated using the Cochrane risk of bias tool, and the GRADE (Grading of Recommendations, Assessment Development, and Evaluation) system was applied to assess the overall quality of the evidence.
resultsA total of 10 studies involving 998 participants were included in this study. Compared to hyaluronic acid injection alone, the combined therapy significantly reduced pain on the visual analogue scale (VAS) and improved the ER and knee function on the Lysholm knee score (LKSS). Of these, the pooled LKSS (MD = 8.09, 95% CI = [7.02, 9.16],
conclusionCurrent evidence suggests that acupuncture therapy combined with hyaluronic acid injection is more effective in alleviating pain, improving the ER and knee function compared with hyaluronic acid injection alone. However, considering the low quality, small size, and high risk of the studies identified in this meta-analysis, more higher methodological quality, rigorously designed randomized controlled trials with large sample sizes are needed to confirm the results.
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.