Table 1.
Characteristics of the included studies: pain.
| Author | Sample size (M/F) Cancer type |
Intervention (n) | Control (n) | Outcome measures | Result | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Intervention | Control | |||||
| Liu 2010 [16] | 50 (31/19) Various |
Bucinnazine (100 mg) injection at ST35 (n = 28) | Bucinnazine (100 mg), IM (n = 22) |
Responder rate (%)a | 85.7%* | 59.1% |
| Li 2009 [17] | 40 (22/18) Various |
Fentanyl plaster (4.2 mg) and Bucinnazine injection at ST36 (n = 20) q8h |
Fentanyl plaster (4.2 mg) and Bucinnazine, IM (n = 20) q8h |
Responder rate (%) | 80% | 80% |
| Shen 2009 [18] | 52 (23/25) Various |
Stauntoniae injection at ear acupoints (n = 23) 0.1–0.3 mL at each point, qd |
Oxycodon, po (n = 25) (1) moderate pain: 5 mg, bid (2) severe pain: 10 mg, bid (dose escalation by 25–50% if pain gets worse) |
(A) Responder rate (%) (B) Onset of analgesia, duration of analgesia (min, mean ± SD) |
(A) 91.3% (B) 17.7 ± 6.9**, 18.2 ± 1.3** |
(A) 92% (B) 31.4 ± 6.6, 11.8 ± 1.0 |
| Dou et al. 2004 [19] | 120 (67/43) Late gastric cancer |
Pethidine (50–100 mg) injection at ST36 (n = 43) | (1) MA at ST36 (n = 39) (2) Pethidine (50–100 mg), IM (n = 39) |
Responder rate (%) | 93%** | (1) 71.8% (2) 60.5% |
| Wang et al. 2004a [20] | 102 (35/67) Various |
Anisodamine (10 mg), dexamethasone (5 mg), and energy synbiotics injection (4 mL) at bilateral ST36, and Vit. B12 (500 μg) at bilateral SP10 (n = 52) qd |
Pethidine (100 mg), IM (n = 50) qd |
Responder rate (%)b | 0 h: 57.7%** 0.5–4 h: 80.8% 4–24 h: 75%** 24–72 h: 78.9%** 96 h: 80.8%** |
0 h: 0% 0.5–4 h: 88% 4–24 h: 50% 24–72 h: 50% 96 h: 52% |
| Wang et al. 2004b [21] | 120 (61/59) Various |
Anisodamine (10 mg), dexamethasone (5 mg), and energy synbiotics injection (4 mL) at bilateral ST36, and Vit. B12 (500 μg) at bilateral SP10 (n = 60) qd |
Pethidine (100 mg), IM (n = 60) qd |
Responder rate (%)b | 0 h: 51.7%** 4 h: 93.3% 24 h: 81.7%** 72 h: 85%** 96 h: 91.7%** |
0 h: 0% 4 h: 95% 24 h: 15% 72 h: 60% 96 h: 63.3% |
| Bai 2003 [22] | 120 (71/49) Various |
Nefopam injection (20 mg) at bilateral ST36 (n = 60) | Pethidine (50 mg), IM (n = 60) | Responder rate (%) | 81.6%* | 65% |
| Guan et al. 2001 [23] | 122 (86/36) Various |
Distilled and purified Chinese herbs (4 mL) injection at various acupoints (n = 61) qd (bid, if pain is severe) |
Western medicine (4 mL) injection at various acupoints (n = 61) qd (bid, if pain is severe) |
Responder rate (%)b | 57.4%* | 42.6% |
AE: adverse events; bid: twice a day; h: hour(s); IM: intramuscular injection; MA: manual acupuncture; min: minute(s); NR: not reported; po: orally; q8h: every 8 hours; qd: everyday; SD: standard deviation; Vit.: vitamin.
Acupuncture point ST36 refers to 36th point of stomach meridian and extra points have different nomenclature (e.g., Ex-UE7 means 7th extra point in the upper extremity).
Responder rate: (number of participants with any improvement from the intervention/total number of participants) ∗ 100(%) unless stated otherwise.
aResponder rate: (number of participants with no need of analgesia/total number of participants) ∗ 100(%).
bResponder rate: (number of participants with improvement from the intervention with no sleep disturbance/total number of participants) ∗ 100(%).
*P < 0.05; **P < 0.01.