ReviewEvidence-based complementary and alternative medicine : eCAM2020
Acupuncture at Zusanli (ST36) for Experimental Sepsis: A Systematic Review.
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 23 papers.
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
23 citing papers in PubMed, 44 citations in OpenAlex.
- Electroacupuncture at Zusanli (ST36), Guanyuan (CV4), and Qihai (CV6) Acupoints Regulates Immune Function in Patients with Sepsis via the PD-1 Pathway.BioMed research international · 2022Trial
- Electroacupuncture Alleviates Pulmonary and Intestinal Injury in Septic Mice via Inhibiting NLRP3 Inflammasome and Remodeling Gut Microbiota.Current medical science · 2026Article
- Electroacupuncture-inspired neuroimmune modulation in sepsis: evidence appraisal and ICU trial-design priorities.Frontiers in medicine · 2026Review
- The impact of acupuncture therapy combined with breathing training on patients with stroke complicated with pulmonary infection: A prospective randomized controlled study.Turkish journal of physical medicine and rehabilitation · 2025Article
- Electroacupuncture Improves Sepsis-Induced Acute Gastrointestinal Injury: A Retrospective Propensity Score-Matched Cohort Study.Health science reports · 2025Article
- Manual Acupuncture for Improvement of Nasolabial Fold: A Quasi-Experimental Research.Medical acupuncture · 2025Article
- Article
- Adjunct Acupuncture Improved Respiratory Status and Weaning from Mechanical Ventilation After Severe COVID-19 Pneumonia.Medical acupuncture · 2024Article
- A novel acupuncture technique at the Zusanli point based on virtual reality and EEG: a pilot study.Frontiers in neuroscience · 2024Article
- Feasibility of electroacupuncture at Baihui (GV20) and Zusanli (ST36) on survival with a favorable neurological outcome in patients with postcardiac arrest syndrome after in-hospital cardiac arrest: study protocol for a pilot randomized controlled trial.Pilot and feasibility studies · 2023Article
- Traditional Chinese medicine for treatment of sepsis and related multi-organ injury.Frontiers in pharmacology · 2023Review
- Role of acupuncture in critically ill patients: A systematic review.Journal of traditional and complementary medicine · 2023Review
- Sympathoinhibitory electroacupuncture (EA) interacts positively with anti-inflammatory EA alleviating blood pressure in hypertensive rats.Frontiers in cardiovascular medicine · 2023Article
- Electroacupuncture Alleviates Neuroinflammation by Inhibiting the HMGB1 Signaling Pathway in Rats with Sepsis-Associated Encephalopathy.Brain sciences · 2022Article
- Electroacupuncture Preconditioning Alleviates Lipopolysaccharides-Induced Acute Lung Injury by Downregulating LC3-II/I and Beclin 1 Expression.Evidence-based complementary and alternative medicine : eCAM · 2022Article
- Electroacupuncture Pretreatment Exhibits Lung Protective and Anti-Inflammation Effects in Lipopolysaccharide-Induced Acute Lung Injury via SIRT1-Dependent Pathways.Evidence-based complementary and alternative medicine : eCAM · 2022Article
- Electroacupuncture at Zusanli Alleviates Sepsis by Regulating the TLR4-MyD88-NF-Kappa B Pathway and Diversity of Intestinal Flora.Evidence-based complementary and alternative medicine : eCAM · 2022Article
- Electroacupuncture at ST36 (Journal of inflammation research · 2022Article
- Efficacy comparison of acupuncture and balanced acupuncture combined with TongduZhengji manipulation in the treatment of acute lumbar sprain.American journal of translational research · 2022Article
- Acupuncture for Primary Dysmenorrhea: A Potential Mechanism from an Anti-Inflammatory Perspective.Evidence-based complementary and alternative medicine : eCAM · 2021Review
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
11 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundSepsis is a global major health problem with high mortality rates. More effective therapy is needed for treating sepsis. Acupuncture has been used for various diseases, including severe infection, in China for more than 2,000 years. Previous studies reported that acupuncture at Zusanli (ST36) might be effective in treating sepsis, but the efficacy and the quality of evidence remain unclear since there is no systematic review on acupuncture at ST36 for sepsis.
methodsSeven databases were searched from the inception of each database up to May 2019. Ultimately, 54 studies using acupuncture at ST36 for the treatment of experimental sepsis were identified in both English and Chinese literature with systematic review procedures.
resultsAcupuncture might be useful in reducing injuries induced by sepsis in cardiac, lung, kidney, liver, gastrointestinal tract, and immune system. Its potential mechanisms for antisepsis might include reducing oxidative stress and inflammation, improving microcirculatory disturbance, and maintaining the immune balance mediated by dopamine. However, the positive findings should be interpreted with caution due to poor methodological quality and publication bias.
conclusionAcupuncture at ST36 might be a promising complementary strategy for controlling sepsis inflammation, yet further studies are needed.
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.