GAUGING THE CLINICAL EFFECTS OF AURICULAR THERAPY FOR ALLERGIC RHINITIS: A META-ANALYSIS OF RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIALS

Abstract

Objective: Research about the application of Auricular therapy (AT) for Allergic rhinitis (AR) is on the increase, but no consistent conclusion has been reached. The purpose of the current study is to evaluate the clinical effects of ear-acupressure in AR patients. Methods: We searched various electronic databases, including Medline (via PubMed), Cochrane, Embase, Web of Science, Chinese Biomedical Literature database, China National Knowledge Infrastructure database, Chinese Scientific Journal database and Wanfang database from their dates of inception to May 24th 2022. Results: Thirty-six trials involving 3,017 participants were eventually included. Compared with the control group, ear-acupressure intervention was more effective for short-term treatment (Risk ratios [RR] = 1.11, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.06 to 1.17, I2 = 65.80%). Moreover, its follow-up efficacy also showed a significant difference (RR = 1.34, 95% CI: 1.08 to 1.65, I2 = 91.20%), which was a new finding in the research of AT. In terms of clinical total nasal symptoms and signs score, patients with auricular acupressure were more likely to be improved (Weighted mean difference [WMD] = -0.59, 95% CI: -0.97 to -0.20, I2 = 73.00%). Conclusion: It was founded that AT might be effective for AR and had the potential to prevent recurrence. Further rigorous research is needed considering certain limitations existing in this study.