Background: This systematic review protocol describes the methods that will be used to evaluate the efficacy and safety of ear acupuncture for trauma-related disorders after large-scale disasters.
Methods and analysis: The following electronic databases will be searched up to May 2019 without language or publication status restrictions: Medline, EMBASE, the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, Allied and Complementary Medicine Database, Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature, and PsycARTICLES. We will also search Korean, Chinese, and Japanese databases. Any clinical studies with original data related to ear acupuncture for trauma-related disorders after large-scale disaster will be included. Traumatic stress-related symptoms will be assessed as primary outcomes. Depression, anxiety, adverse events, and total effective rate will be evaluated as secondary outcomes. Two researchers will independently perform the study selection, data extraction, and assessment of study quality. Descriptive analyses of the details of participants, interventions, and outcomes for all included studies will be conducted. Data synthesis and analysis will be performed using RevMan version 5.3. The methodological quality of the included studies will be evaluated according to the study design.
Ethics and dissemination: Ethical approval is not required because individual patient data are not included. The findings of this systematic review will be disseminated through a peer-reviewed publication or conference presentations.
Prospero registration number: CRD42019134658.