Effectiveness of acupuncture in the management of restless leg syndrome: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Huang, Cheng; Tang, Jia-Fa; Sun, Wei; Wang, Lizhe; Jin, Yi-Si

doi:10.21037/apm-21-2309

Cited by 9 publications

(8 citation statements)

References 23 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…This study uses a well-defined acupressure protocol that focuses on 6 specific acupuncture points, some of which have already been shown to be effective in previous acupuncture and acupressure studies in RLS [30,31,33] and were finally determined by consensus by our own experts in Chinese medicine with more than 25 years of acupuncture practice. A balance was reached between a sufficiently large number of acupoints to achieve an effect and a small number of points so that the daily time commitment for the patients remains manageable and feasible.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Two systematic reviews in 2019 and 2021 showed that acupuncture was significantly superior to control interventions for RLS in terms of severity and reported significant clinical effects. [27,[30][31][32] While acupuncture requires a trained therapist to stimulate specific acupoints with needles, acupressure involves massaging the same acupoints with fingers or hands, making it suitable for self-application.…”

Section: Background and Rationalementioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Hydrotherapy and acupressure in restless legs syndrome: A randomized, controlled, 3-armed, explorative clinical trial

Kubasch,

Ortiz,

Binting

et al. 2023

Medicine

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Background: Restless legs syndrome (RLS) is a common neurological disease that has a significant impact on daily activities and quality of life, for which there is often no satisfactory therapy. Complementary medicine, such as acupressure and hydrotherapy, is used to treat patients with RLS; however, the clinical evidence is unclear. This study aims to investigate the effects and feasibility of self-administered hydrotherapy and acupressure in patients with RLS. Methods: This is a randomized, controlled, open-label, exploratory, clinical study with 3 parallel arms, comparing both self-applied hydrotherapy (according to the German non-medical naturopath Sebastian Kneipp) and acupressure in addition to routine care in comparison to routine care alone (waiting list control) in patients with RLS. Fifty-one patients with at least moderate restless-legs syndrome will be randomized. Patients in the hydrotherapy group will be trained in the self-application of cold knee/lower leg affusions twice daily for 6 weeks. The acupressure group will be trained in the self-application of 6-point-acupressure therapy once daily for 6 weeks. Both interventions take approximately 20 minutes daily. The 6-week mandatory study intervention phase, which is in addition to the patient preexisting routine care treatment, is followed by a 6-week follow-up phase with optional interventions. The waitlist group will not receive any study intervention in addition to their routine care before the end of week 12. Outcome parameters including RLS-severity, disease and health-related quality of life (RLS-QoL, SF-12), Hospital Anxiety and Depression Score in German version, general self-efficacy scale, and study intervention safety will be measured at baseline and after 6 and 12 weeks. The statistical analyses will be descriptive and exploratory. Conclusion: In the case of clinically relevant therapeutic effects, feasibility, and therapeutic safety, the results will be the basis for planning a future confirmatory randomized trial and for helping to develop further RLS self-treatment concepts.

show abstract

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Background and Rationalementioning

confidence: 99%

Hydrotherapy and acupressure in restless legs syndrome: A randomized, controlled, 3-armed, explorative clinical trial

Kubasch,

Ortiz,

Binting

et al. 2023

Medicine

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…According to another systematic review, Yoga and pneumatic compression improved symptoms associated with WED 404 . A 2021 meta-analysis described that a combination of pharmacological treatment with acupuncture produced better clinical outcomes for PLMD, when compared to acupuncture alone 408 . For WED and PLMD, PTs should educate patients about the condition and encourage them to take regular physical exercise and practice good sleep hygiene (as poor sleep can worsen symptoms).…”

Section: Willis-ekbom Disease and Periodic Limb Movement Disordermentioning

confidence: 99%

“…First, the interaction with the medical team for receiving supportive information about the proposed treatment is crucial. Second, several studies have shown significant improvements in the symptoms of WED and PLMD following the use of non-pharmacological therapies for their treatment [403][404][405][406][407][408] . Since WED improves with movement, the hypothesis that exercise improves the disease has been tested, with promising findings in different populations (Table 22).…”

Section: Role Of the Physical Therapistmentioning

confidence: 99%

Practice recommendations for the role of physiotherapy in the management of sleep disorders: the 2022 Brazilian Sleep Association Guidelines

Frange¹,

Franco²,

Brasil³

et al. 2022

Sleep Sci

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

This clinical guideline supported by the Brazilian Sleep Association comprises a brief history of the development of Brazilian sleep physiotherapy, outlines the role of the physiotherapist as part of a sleep health team, and describes the clinical guidelines in respect of the management of some sleep disorders by the physiotherapist (including sleep breathing disorders, i.e., obstructive sleep apnea, central sleep apnea, upper airway resistance syndrome, hypoventilation syndromes and overlap syndrome, and pediatric sleep breathing disorders; sleep bruxism; circadian rhythms disturbances; insomnia; and Willis-Ekbom disease/periodic limb movement disorder. This clinical practice guideline reflects the state of the art at the time of publication and will be reviewed and updated as new information becomes available.

show abstract

“…In the Study Protocol article, He et al detailed their single-blind, randomized, sham-controlled trial of combining acupuncture with exercise training to improve dyspnea in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Dozens of articles previously published in Annals of Palliative Medicine have chronical some of the myriad medical benefits of acupuncture, including recent systematic reviews and meta-analyses showing that acupuncture is an effective treatment for insomnia (1), beneficial in the early treatment of stroke (2), has a significant positive effect in treating myasthenia gravis (3), improves symptoms of osteoarthritis (4), and effectively treats restless leg syndrome (5).…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

The benefits of acupuncture for dyspnea in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and of cardiac ablation for atrial fibrillation in hemodialysis patients

Simone¹

2022

Ann Palliat Med

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

Effectiveness of acupuncture in the management of restless leg syndrome: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Cited by 9 publications

References 23 publications

Hydrotherapy and acupressure in restless legs syndrome: A randomized, controlled, 3-armed, explorative clinical trial

Hydrotherapy and acupressure in restless legs syndrome: A randomized, controlled, 3-armed, explorative clinical trial

Practice recommendations for the role of physiotherapy in the management of sleep disorders: the 2022 Brazilian Sleep Association Guidelines

The benefits of acupuncture for dyspnea in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and of cardiac ablation for atrial fibrillation in hemodialysis patients

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About