The curative effect of traditional Chinese medicine fumigation combined with acupotomy in the treatment of heel pain: A meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND

To evaluate the clinical therapeutic effect of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) fumigation combined with acupotomy for treatment of heel pain.

METHODS

After a comprehensive search of large databases globally, a meta-analysis was performed on the results of randomized controlled trials conforming to the inclusion criteria using Review Manager 5.4. software, and the quality of the evidence rated using the Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and Evaluation profiler 3.2.2 software.

RESULTS

A total of 1095 patients were included in 12 studies, with 548 in the treatment group and 547 in the control group. Heterogeneity test analysis showed no statistical heterogeneity among the 12 studies; therefore, a fixed-effects model combined with effect size analysis was used. The results of the meta-analysis showed that the clinical difference between the experimental and control groups was statistically significant. Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and Evaluation system evidence grading showed that the evidence grade of TCM fumigation combined with acupotomy for heel pain was low.

CONCLUSIONS

The curative effect of TCM fumigation combined with acupotomy in the treatment of heel pain was better than that of medicine alone. The evidence quality level of this conclusion was not high, and the research conclusion should be treated with caution and further confirmed using large samples and high-quality clinical trials.