Ultrasound-Guided Acupuncture Treatment for Rotator Cuff Injury: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

회전근개 질환의 초음파 유도하 침치료에 대한 체계적 문헌고찰 및 메타분석

Objectives This study aims to systematically analyze and conduct a meta-analysis on randomized controlled trials of ultrasound-guided acupuncture treatment for rotator cuff injury, thereby providing clear evidence of its efficacy. Methods We searched in a total of 10 databases: PubMed, Embase, Cochrane Library, China National Knowledge Infrastructure, KoreaMed, Korean studies Information Service System, Korean Medical database, ScienceON, Research Information Sharing Service, and Oriental Medicine Advanced Searching Integrated System. Results 6 randomized controlled trials were included. All interventions were performed using ultrasound guidance. The most frequent modality was acupotomy alone (4 studies), followed by acupotomy combined with rehabilitation (1 study), acupotomy combined with acupuncture (1 study). In the meta-analysis, the intervention group that received ultrasound-guided acupotomy for subacromial impingement syndrome showed a statistically significant reduction in shoulder pain compared to the non-guided acupotomy group. A total of 13 assessment tools were used in the studies, with the visual analog scale being the most commonly used, appearing in all 6 studies. No adverse events were reported in the included studies. Conclusions This study suggests that ultrasound-guided acupuncture treatment has a benefit in reducing pain for patients with rotator cuff injury. Due to the overall low certainty of evidence among the included studies, future rigorous controlled studies are warranted to strengthen the clinical evidence.