Acupuncture for patients with chronic urticaria: a systematic review protocol.
BACKGROUND
This systematic review protocol aims to describe a meta-analysis to assess the effectiveness and safety of acupuncture therapy for patients with chronic urticaria.


METHODS
We will electronically search the following databases: the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL), PubMed, EMBASE, the Web of Science, Traditional Chinese Medicine, China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI), Chinese Biomedical Literature Database (CBM), Chinese Scientific Journal Database (VIP database) and Wan-Fang Database from their inception. Other sources will also be searched, including the reference lists of identified publications and conference proceedings. Any clinical randomised controlled trials related to acupuncture for treating chronic urticaria without restriction of publication status and languages will be included. Study selection, data extraction and assessment of study quality will be performed independently by 2 researchers. Data will be synthesised by either the fixed-effects or random-effects model according to a heterogeneity test. Improvement in pruritus and wheals will be assessed as the primary outcomes. Adverse events, quality of life and the recurrence rate after at least 3 months of the treatment will also be evaluated as secondary outcomes. RevMan V.5.2 statistical software will be used for meta-analysis, if possible. If it is not appropriate for a meta-analysis, then a descriptive analysis or a subgroup analysis will be conducted. The results will be expressed as a risk ratio for dichotomous data and mean difference (MD) or standardised MD for continuous data.
The protocol of this systematic review will be disseminated in a peer-reviewed journal and presented at relevant conferences. It is not necessary for a formal ethical approval because the data are not individualised.


BACKGROUND
PROSPERO CRD42015015702.
Department of Acupuncture, Guang'anmen Hospital, China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences, Beijing, China School of Graduates, Beijing University of Chinese Medicine, Beijing, China.
Qin
Q
Yao
Department of Acupuncture, Guang'anmen Hospital, China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences, Beijing, China.
Yongming
Y
Ye
Department of Acupuncture, Guang'anmen Hospital, China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences, Beijing, China School of Graduates, Beijing University of Chinese Medicine, Beijing, China.
Xiaoxu
X
Liu
Department of Acupuncture, Guang'anmen Hospital, China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences, Beijing, China School of Graduates, Beijing University of Chinese Medicine, Beijing, China.
Zongshi
Z
Qin
Department of Acupuncture, Guang'anmen Hospital, China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences, Beijing, China.
Zhishun
Z
Liu
D015670:Acupuncture Therapy / Q000379:methods*; D002908:Chronic Disease; D006801:Humans; D011788:Quality of Life; D012107:Research Design; D000078202:Systematic Reviews as Topic; D014581:Urticaria / Q000628:therapy*
COMPLEMENTARY MEDICINE; acupuncture; chronic urticaria; protocol