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conferenceseries.com
Volume 6, Issue 5 (Suppl) J Pain Relief, an open access journal
ISSN: 2167-0846 Pain Management 2017
October 05-06, 2017
5th International Conference and Exhibition on
October 05-06, 2017 London, UK
Pain Research And Management
Does acupuncture alter pain-related functional connectivity of the central nervous system? A
systematic review
María Villarreal Santiago, Tumilty Steve, Macznik Aleksandra and Mani Ramakrishnan
Centre for Health, Activity and Rehabilitation Research-University of Otago, New Zealand
Background&Aim:One of the proposedmechanisms behind acupuncture analgesia is normalizing the pain-related functional
connectivity (FC) of the central nervous system. Several studies have investigated the effect of acupuncture on FC changes.
However, to date, there is no conclusive evidence on the ability of acupuncture intervention on pain-related FC. Therefore, the
aim of the systematic review was to evaluate the evidence for the effectiveness of acupuncture on influencing the FC of the CNS
in patients with musculoskeletal pain.
Methods: To identify relevant studies, a systematic literature search was conducted in the following databases: AMED,
CINAHL, EMBASE, MEDLINE, PEDro, PubMed, SCOPUS, and Web of Science using relevant MeSH. Two independent
reviewers have conducted article screening process, methodological quality assessment of the included studies (Downs and
Black questionnaire) and level of completeness and transparency in reporting acupuncture interventions with STRICTA.
Results & Conclusion: Seven studies met the inclusion criteria, out of which, 3 were RCTs and four were Non-RCTs.
Included participants (n=191) were presented with a range of clinical conditions (osteoarthritis, chronic low back pain, carpal
tunnel syndrome, and fibromyalgia). Methodological quality of the studies was high in 6 studies and moderate in one study.
Information on depth of needle insertion, needle retention time, and needle type were not reported. Due to heterogeneity in
FC measures, the meta-analysis was not conducted. Positive alterations on FC of the CNS were consistently observed following
long-term acupuncture intervention in patients with musculoskeletal pain. This review provides a preliminary evidence on the
effectiveness of acupuncture on FC in patients with musculoskeletal pain.
Biography
María Villarreal Santiago is a Physiotherapist from Mexico. She has worked as a Physiotherapist both in hospital and private practice settings, gaining invaluable
clinical experience in managing patients with neurological and orthopedic illnesses. In 2014, she got a Mexican government scholarship to study Master´s Degree
in Physiotherapy (endorsement in acupuncture) at the University of Otago, New Zealand. During her Master´s dissertation she became fascinated by acupuncture
and interested to conduct research to elucidate the mechanisms behind acupuncture analgesia. She is currently working in a private clinic in Mexico City and as a
Professor in Diploma of Manual Therapy, teaching all around Mexico.
María Villarreal Santiago et al., J Pain Relief 2017, 6:5(Suppl)
DOI: 10.4172/2167-0846-C1-014