Efficacy and safety of bloodletting puncture and cupping in postherpetic neuralgia: A systematic review and meta‑analysis

Wenyun Kui; Lei Xie; Yanan Li; Zhen Gu; Shuang Liu; Chunchun Xue; Kaiqiang Wang

doi:10.3892/br.2023.1718

Efficacy and safety of bloodletting puncture and cupping in postherpetic neuralgia: A systematic review and meta‑analysis

Biomed Rep. 2023 Dec 28;20(2):30. doi: 10.3892/br.2023.1718. eCollection 2024 Feb.

Authors

Wenyun Kui¹, Lei Xie¹, Yanan Li¹, Zhen Gu¹, Shuang Liu¹, Chunchun Xue¹, Kaiqiang Wang¹

Affiliation

¹ Department of Pain, Shanghai Municipal Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shanghai 200071, P.R. China.

Abstract

The present study aimed to evaluate the efficacy and safety of bloodletting puncture and cupping (BLP-C) in postherpetic neuralgia (PHN) and to provide guidance for clinical treatment. Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) of BLP-C therapy in PHN were systematically searched in eight databases from inception to September 2022. Literature screening, data extraction and quality assessment were performed by two independent researchers. Dichotomous and continuous variables were pooled using the risk ratio (RR) and weighted mean difference (WMD), respectively. A total of 13 studies involving 1,129 patients with PHN (571 in the experimental group and 558 in the control group) were included in the present meta-analysis. Overall efficacy (RR=1.21, 95% CI: 1.15 to 1.28, P<0.00001), VAS score (WMD=-1.10, 95% CI: -1.31 to -0.90, P<0.00001) and PSQI score (WMD=-2.42, 95% CI: -2.87 to -1.96, P<0.0001) were significantly different between the BLP-C group and Western medicine group. Furthermore, subgroup analysis demonstrated that BLP-C alone or combined with other traditional Chinese medicines was more effective than Western medicine in PHN. A total of four RCTs mentioned adverse reactions, most of which were in the Western medicine group and were relieved after treatment discontinuation. In conclusion, BLP-C is superior to Western medicine in relieving pain and improving the sleep quality of patients with PHN with a lower incidence of adverse effects.

Keywords: Traditional Chinese Medicine; blood-letting puncture; cupping; meta-analysis; postherpetic neuralgia; systematic review.

Grants and funding

Funding: The current study was supported by the Shanghai Science and Technology Planning Project (grant no. 20Y21903100), Clinical Research Plan of Shanghai Shenkang Hospital Development Center (grant no. SHDC2020CR3102B), Shanghai Three-year Action Plan for Further Accelerating the Development of TCM [grant no. ZY(2018-2020)-ZYBZ-06] and Shanghai University of TCM Excellent Talents Training Program [grant no. TCM(2020)10].