Table 1.
Main characteristics of the included studies.
| 1st author, year | Sample size (I/C) | Age ranges (I/C) | Mean ages (I/C) | M:F | Course of disease (I/C) | Diagnosis for inclusion | Intervention | Control | Outcome measures | Adverse event (I/C) | Follow up | Location |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Farahmand (2012)[18] | 126 (63/63) | 18–65 | 45.1/47.1 | NM | NM | Physician diagnosed | Wet Cupping + dietary advice | Dietary advice | 1) Anthropometric: weight, BMI, WC, HC, W: Hip, SBP, DBP 2) Laboratory: FBG, TC, TG, HDL-C, LDL-C, Fat %, total body fat mass |
No Adverse event | 6 wk | Iran |
| Farahmand (2014)[19] | 126 (63/63) | 18–65 | NM | NM | NM | Physician diagnosed | Wet Cupping + dietary advice | Dietary advice | hs-CRP, Hsp 27 antibody | No Adverse event | 6 wk | Iran |
| Wang (2015)[20] | 60 (30/30) | 19–46 | 31.5/30.6 | 52:8 | 1–10 yr | CSC Criteria 2007 | Fire Cupping + needle cupping + manipulation + herb | Herb | 1) Anthropometric: weight, BMI, WC, W:H, Fat %, SBP, DBP 2) Laboratory: FBG, TC, TG, HDL-C, LDL-C, hs-CRP, HOMA-IR, Chemerin, LP, Ob-R, TNF-α, ER |
No Adverse event | 4 wk | China |
| Liang (2019)[21] | 75 (25/25/25) | 25–70 | 47.9/51.8/51.2 | 16:59 | NM | CDS Criteria 2013 | 1. Fire Cupping + moving cupping with ointment 2. Acup |
Waiting group | WC, SBP, DBP, FBG, 2hBG, TG, HDL-C, Subcutaneous fat thickness, MetS prevalence | NM | Nil | China |
| Zhou (2021)[22] | 102 (51/51) | Nil | 45.6/44.9 | 60:42 | 3.4/3.4 yr | IDF Criteria | Moving Cupping + Acup | Acup | Weight, BMI, WC, W: Hip, AFT, VAI | NM | Nil | China |
2hBG = 2 hours postprandial blood glucose, Acup = acupuncture, AFT = abdominal fat thickness, BMI = body mass index, CDS = Chinese Diabetes Society, CSC = Chinese Society of Cardiology, DBP = diastolic blood pressure, ER = effective rate, Fat% = Body Total Fat percentage, FBG = fasting blood glucose, HDL-C = high density lipoprotein cholesterol, herb = Traditional Chinese herbal medicine, HOMA-IR = Homeostasis Model Assessment-Insulin Resistance index, hs-CRP = high sensitivity C-reactive protein, IDF = International Diabetes Federation, LDL-C = low density lipoprotein cholesterol, LP = leptin, MetS = metabolic syndrome, NM = not mentioned, Ob-R = obese gene receptor, SBP = systolic blood pressure, TC = total cholesterol, TG = triglyceride, TNF-α = tumor necrosis factor-alpha, VAI = visceral adiposity index, W:H = waist:height, W:Hip = waist:hip circumference ratio, WC = waist circumference.