Table 2.
Basic information of the included SRs/MAs.
| Author, year (country) | Language of publication | Trials (subjects) | Intervention group | Control group | Quality assessment | Main results |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Liu et al., 2012 (China) [26] | Chinese | 10 (782) | Acupuncture/acupuncture+antihypertensive drugs | Antihypertensive drugs | Jadad scale | Acupuncture is safe and effective in the treatment of mild to moderate essential hypertension. |
| Yu et al., 2013 (China) [27] | Chinese | 18 (1462) | Acupuncture | Antihypertensive drugs | Jadad scale | The data indicate that acupuncture and drugs have the same therapeutic effect on essential hypertension. |
| Zhang et al., 2013 (China) [28] | Chinese | 11 (1072) | Acupuncture/acupuncture+antihypertensive drugs | Sham acupuncture/antihypertensive drugs | Cochrane criteria | Acupuncture can reduce blood pressure to varying degrees without adverse reactions,but there are certain defects in the quality of the included studies, and more high-quality studies are needed. |
| Qian, 2013 (China) [29] | Chinese | 18 (1473) | Acupuncture/acupuncture+conventional therapy | Sham acupuncture/antihypertensive drugs/conventional therapy | Cochrane criteria | Acupuncture has potential efficacy in the treatment of essential hypertension without serious adverse reactions |
| Guo et al., 2013 (China) [30] | Chinese | 10 (679) | Acupuncture+antihypertensive drugs | Antihypertensive drugs | Cochrane criteria | The combination of acupuncture and medicine has good clinical efficacy in the treatment of essential hypertension. |
| Zhang et al., 2014 (China) [31] | Chinese | 13 (1066) | Acupuncture/acupuncture+antihypertensive drugs | Antihypertensive drugs | Jadad scale | Acupuncture is a valuable medical method, and to a certain extent, it can be used as a safe, green, and beneficial therapy to replace western medicine for lowering blood pressure, and acupuncture combined with antihypertensive has better curative effect. |
| Zhang et al., 2017 (China) [32] | Chinese | 53 (4459) | Acupuncture/acupuncture+antihypertensive drugs | Antihypertensive drugs | Cochrane criteria | A comparison of acupuncture/acupuncture combined with antihypertensive drugs and pure antihypertensive drugs has a good effect in improving all aspects of the condition of hypertensive patients. |
| Zhu and Ding, 2018 (China) [33] | Chinese | 22 (1758) | Acupuncture/acupuncture+antihypertensive drugs/acupuncture+behavioral therapy | Antihypertensive drugs | Jadad scale | Research analysis shows that acupuncture at GB20 (Fengchi) and Ll11 (Quchi) points has a definite curative effect and high safety in the treatment of essential hypertension. |
| Han et al., 2019 (China) [34] | Chinese | 7 (722) | Acupuncture+Tianma Gouteng decoction | Antihypertensive drugs/Tianma Gouteng decoction | Cochrane criteria | Acupuncture combined with Tianma Gouteng decoction has a good curative effect in the treatment of hypertension. |
| Lee et al., 2009 (South Korea) [35] | English | 11 (847) | Acupuncture or acupuncture+antihypertensive drugs | Placebo (sham acupuncture)/antihypertensive drugs/lifestyle intervention | Oxford scale | Considering the limitation of the four positive noninferiority studies and the results of the meta-analysis of the three sham-controlled studies, the notion that acupuncture may lower high blood pressure is inconclusive. |
| Li et al., 2014 (China) [36] | English | 4 (386) | Acupuncture or acupuncture+antihypertensive drugs | Placebo (sham acupuncture) | Jadad scale | Our results are consistent with the conclusion that acupuncture significantly lowers blood pressure in patients taking antihypertensive medications. |
| Zhao et al., 2015 (China) [37] | English | 23 (1788) | Acupuncture/acupuncture+lifestyle modification/abdominal acupuncture+antihypertensive drugs | Lifestyle modification/antihypertensive drugs/sham acupuncture | Cochrane criteria | Our review provided evidence of acupuncture as an adjunctive therapy to medication for treating hypertension, while the evidence for acupuncture alone lowering blood pressure is insufficient. |
| Chen et al., 2018 (China) [38] | English | 30 (2107) | Acupuncture or electroacupuncture or + lifestyle modifications/or + antihypertensive drugs | Sham acupuncture or lifestyle modifications or antihypertensive drugs | Cochrane criteria | Our systematic review indicates there is inadequate high-quality evidence that acupuncture therapy is useful in treating hypertension, as the exact effect and safety of acupuncture therapy for hypertension are still unclear. |
| Zhang et al., 2022 (China) [39] | English | 10 (1196) | Acupuncture therapy or + nonacupuncture hypertension treatment measures | No treatment/nonacupuncture hypertension treatment measures | Cochrane criteria | Existing evidence shows that acupuncture could be used for treating hypertension. |