Acupuncture for treating temporomandibular joint disorders: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized, sham-controlled trials.

OBJECTIVE

The aim of this article was to assess the clinical evidence for or against acupuncture and acupuncture-like therapies as treatments for temporomandibular joint disorder (TMD).

DATA

This systematic review includes randomized clinical trials (RCTs) of acupuncture as a treatment for TMD compared to sham acupuncture. The search terms were selected according to medical subject heading (MeSH).

SOURCES

Systematic searches were conducted in 13 electronic databases up to July 2010; Medline, PubMed, The Cochrane Library 2010 (Issue 7), CINAHL, EMBASE, seven Korean Medical Databases and a Chinese Medical Database.

STUDY SELECTION

All parallel or cross-over RCTs of acupuncture for TMD were searched without language restrictions. Studies in which no clinical data and complex interventions were excluded. Finally, total of 7 RCTs met our inclusion criteria.

CONCLUSIONS

In conclusion, our systematic review and meta-analysis demonstrate that the evidence for acupuncture as a symptomatic treatment of TMD is limited. Further rigorous studies are, however, required to establish beyond doubt whether acupuncture has therapeutic value for this indication.