SynthesisInternal and emergency medicine2024
Comparison of the efficacy of acupuncture with tuina with acupuncture-only in the treatment of peripheral facial paralysis: a network meta-analysis.
Synthesis in Internal and emergency medicine, 2024. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 10 papers, 4 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, 4 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- Hotspots and trends in acupuncture combined with non-invasive neuromodulation technology in the past 20 years: a bibliometric analysis.Frontiers in neurology · 2025Pooled it
- Integrating natural non-pharmaceutical therapies into medical tourism: a dynamic health portrait-driven model for proactive older adult health and public health services.Frontiers in public health · 2025Pooled it
- The efficacy and safety of acupuncture treatment for peripheral facial paralysis: an overview of systematic review and meta-analysis.Frontiers in neurology · 2025Pooled it
- Systematic evaluation and meta-analysis of the efficacy of Jingjin acupuncture therapy in the treatment of peripheral facial palsy.Frontiers in neurology · 2024Pooled it
- Effects of Acupuncture-Combined Tuina on Patients With Knee Osteoarthritis: Protocol for a Randomized Controlled Trial.JMIR research protocols · 2026Trial
- Exosome-functionalized photocrosslinked GelMA/HAMA hydrogel promotes facial nerve recovery via inflammatory microenvironment regulation.Bioactive materials · 2026Article
- Peripheral facial palsy: contemporary advances and unresolved debates in management from pathogenic mechanisms to tailored reconstruction.Frontiers in neurology · 2026Review
- Super-Selective Intra-arterial Thrombolytic Therapy for Peripheral Facial Paralysis After Postauricular Hyaluronic Acid Injection for the Esthetic Correction of Lying Ears.Aesthetic plastic surgery · 2025Article
- Evaluation of nerve function after Bell's palsy based on different facial nerve assessment scales HBGS/SFGS/MPS: A comparative study.PloS one · 2025Article
- Yin-Yang Harmony Acupuncture Therapy improves facial motor function and resting state facial appearance in peripheral facial paralysis.American journal of translational research · 2025Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
7 authors.
Funding
Abstract
At present, traditional Chinese medicine treatment is considered safe for treating peripheral facial paralysis (PFP). Acupuncture-only and acupuncture combined with tuina are widely used for this purpose. However, it is not clear whether acupuncture combined with tuina is better for treating PFP than acupuncture-only. Conventional meta-analysis and network meta-analysis were used to compare the clinical efficacies of acupuncture combined with tuina and acupuncture-only in the treatment of PFP. Randomized controlled trials (RCTs), with the subjects being patients with PFP and treatment interventions including acupuncture combined with tuina, acupuncture-only, tuina-only, placebo, single Western medicine, and steroids combined with other Western medicine were searched from both Chinese and English databases. The primary outcomes included Modified House-Brackmann (MHBN) scores and Sunnybrook Facial Grading System, whereas the secondary outcomes included cure time, Portmann scores, and physical function scale of Facial Disability Index, using conventional meta-analysis and network meta-analysis. The study included 22 RCTs with a sample size of 1814 patients. The results of conventional meta-analysis (MD = 16.12, 95%CI 13.13,19.10) and network meta-analysis (MD = 14.53, 95%CI 7.57,21.49) indicate that acupuncture combined with tuina was better than acupuncture-only in improving MHBN and shortening the cure time (MD = - 6.09, 95%CI - 7.70, - 4.49). Acupuncture combined with tuina was the optimal therapy for improving MHBN (SUCRA was 100%) and shortening the cure time (SUCRA was 100%). The results of this meta-analysis indicate that acupuncture combined with tuina can significantly improve MHBN and shorten the cure time, compared with acupuncture-only. However, the current evidence is insufficient, and more high-quality clinical studies are needed.Registration: This study had been registered with PROSPERO (CRD42022379395).
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