Combined traditional Chinese medicine therapy for the treatment of infertility with polycystic ovary syndrome: A network meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.
Study Goal
The researchers aimed to evaluate the efficacy of combined traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) therapies, including acupuncture, for treating infertility in women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) using network meta-analysis.
Results Summary
Combined TCM therapies, particularly acupuncture + herbal, moxibustion + herbal, and fire acupuncture + herbal, significantly improved clinical pregnancy and ovulation rates compared to monotherapies (acupuncture, herbal, or western medicine alone). The optimal therapy varied depending on the outcome measure.
Population
Women with PCOS-related infertility.
Effective Dosage
Not specified
Duration
Not specified
Interactions
None mentioned
| Intervention | Direction | Endpoint | Population | Dosage | Impact | Claim # |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
moxibustion + herbal | increase | clinical pregnancy rate | patients with infertility with PCOS | - | improved the clinical pregnancy rate better than acupuncture, herbal, and western medicines monotherapy | #1 |
fire acupuncture + herbal | increase | clinical pregnancy rate | patients with infertility with PCOS | - | improved the clinical pregnancy rate better than acupuncture, herbal, and western medicines monotherapy | #2 |
acupuncture + herbal | increase | clinical pregnancy rate | patients with infertility with PCOS | - | improved the clinical pregnancy rate better than acupuncture, herbal, and western medicines monotherapy | #3 |
electroacupuncture + herbal | increase | clinical pregnancy rate | patients with infertility with PCOS | - | improved the clinical pregnancy rate better than acupuncture, herbal, and western medicines monotherapy | #4 |
acupoint application + herbal | increase | clinical pregnancy rate | patients with infertility with PCOS | - | improved the clinical pregnancy rate better than acupuncture, herbal, and western medicines monotherapy | #5 |
ear point pressure + herbal enema + herbal | increase | ovulation rate | patients with infertility with PCOS | - | improved the ovulation rate better than acupuncture, herbal, and western medicines monotherapy | #6 |
acupuncture and moxibustion + herbal | increase | ovulation rate | patients with infertility with PCOS | - | improved the ovulation rate better than acupuncture, herbal, and western medicines monotherapy | #7 |
fire acupuncture + herbal | increase | ovulation rate | patients with infertility with PCOS | - | improved the ovulation rate better than acupuncture, herbal, and western medicines monotherapy | #8 |
acupuncture + herbal | increase | ovulation rate | patients with infertility with PCOS | - | improved the ovulation rate better than acupuncture, herbal, and western medicines monotherapy | #9 |
moxibustion + herbal | increase | clinical pregnancy rate | patients with infertility with PCOS | - | are the most effective therapies for improving the clinical pregnancy rate | #10 |
fire acupuncture + herbal | increase | clinical pregnancy rate | patients with infertility with PCOS | - | are the most effective therapies for improving the clinical pregnancy rate | #11 |
acupuncture + herbal | increase | clinical pregnancy rate | patients with infertility with PCOS | - | are the most effective therapies for improving the clinical pregnancy rate | #12 |
fire acupuncture + herbal | increase | ovulation rate | patients with infertility with PCOS | - | are the most effective therapies for improving the ovulation rate | #13 |
acupuncture + herbal | increase | ovulation rate | patients with infertility with PCOS | - | are the most effective therapies for improving the ovulation rate | #14 |
ear point pressure + herbal enema + herbal | increase | ovulation rate | patients with infertility with PCOS | - | are the most effective therapies for improving the ovulation rate | #15 |
combined TCM therapy | increase | efficacy for the treatment of infertility with PCOS | patients with infertility with PCOS | - | demonstrated better efficacy for the treatment of infertility with PCOS compared to acupuncture, herbal, and western medicines monotherapy | #16 |
BACKGROUND: Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) infertility has attracted great attention from researchers due to its high incidence. Numerous studies have shown that Chinese medicine is effective in treating this disease, but there is a wide variety of Chinese medicine therapies available, and there is a lack of comparative evaluation of the efficacy of various Chinese medicine combination therapies in the clinic, which requires further in-depth exploration. This study aims to evaluate the efficacy of a combined traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) therapy for the treatment of infertility with PCOS using network meta-analysis (NMA). METHODS: In PubMed, web of Science, Cochrane Library, Embase, China Knowledge Network, Wanfang Data, VIP Database, China Biomedical Literature Database (SinoMed) databases, searchs were conducted for information about the randomized controlled trials (RCTs) of combined TCM therapy for the treatment of infertility with PCOS. Quality evaluation was performed using the Cochrane 5.3 risk of bias assessment tool, and NMA using Stata 16.0. RESULTS: This study comprised 28 RCTs using 8 combined TCM therapies in total. The results of the NMA showed that moxibustion + herbal, fire acupuncture + herbal, acupuncture + herbal, electroacupuncture + herbal, and acupoint application + herbal improved the clinical pregnancy rate better than acupuncture, herbal, and western medicines monotherapy (P < .05). Additionally, ear point pressure + herbal enema + herbal, acupuncture and moxibustion + herbal, fire acupuncture + herbal, and acupuncture + herbal improved the ovulation rate better than acupuncture, herbal, and western medicines monotherapy (P < .05). Moxibustion + herbal, fire acupuncture + herbal, and acupuncture + herbal are the 3 most effective therapies for improving the clinical pregnancy rate. Fire acupuncture + herbal, acupuncture + herbal, and ear point pressure + herbal enema + herbal are the 3 most effective therapies for improving the ovulation rate. CONCLUSION: The combined TCM therapy demonstrated better efficacy for the treatment of infertility with PCOS compared to acupuncture, herbal, and western medicines monotherapy. However, the optimal treatment therapy varied depending on the outcome indicators. Further large sample, high-quality, and standardized RCTs are needed to verify these findings.