Background: Aphasia is one of the common complications of stroke, and it considerably influences the quality of life of patients. Acupuncture, a therapy used in traditional Chinese medicine for aphasia after stroke, has potential therapeutic effects. We aimed to investigate the therapeutic effect of acupuncture on individuals with poststroke aphasia. Methods: Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) on acupuncture for poststroke aphasia (either alone or combined with other therapies) were included and compared. We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis by searching databases, such as MEDLINE, Cochrane Library, Embase, China National Knowledge Infrastructure, VIP, and Wanfang, from inception to July 15, 2019. No language restrictions were applied in this study. Results: Fourteen trials involving 936 participants had poor reporting and methodological quality. Our meta-analysis showed that compared to the speech and language therapy (SLT) group, acupuncture combined with SLT could improve the rate of Boston Diagnostic Aphasia Examination (BDAE) (OR: 0.15, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.04–0.25, p = 0.005), scores of Aphasia Battery of Chinese (ABC) which includes repeating ability (SMD: 1.46, 95% CI: 1.24–1.69, p #x3c; 0.00001), reading ability (SMD: 1.57, 95% CI: 1.25–1.90, p #x3c; 0.00001), writing ability (SMD: 1.52, 95% CI: 1.19–1.86, p #x3c; 0.00001), naming ability (SMD: 1.40, 95% CI: 1.04–1.76, p #x3c; 0.00001), and listening comprehension ability (SMD: 0.57, 95% CI: 0.22–0.92, p = 0.001). All RCTs were considered at high risk of biased assessment. Conclusions: Acupuncture (either alone or combined with SLT) may be effective for poststroke aphasia. In the future, rigorous clinical trials with an accurate method design and high reporting quality are required to validate our results.
Complement Med Res

中文翻译：

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针灸治疗卒中后失语症的有效性：随机对照试验的系统评价和荟萃分析

背景：失语症是脑卒中常见的并发症之一，严重影响患者的生活质量。针灸是一种用于治疗中风后失语症的中医疗法，具有潜在的治疗效果。我们旨在研究针灸对卒中后失语症患者的治疗效果。方法：纳入并比较针刺治疗卒中后失语症（单独或联合其他疗法）的随机对照试验（RCT）。我们通过检索 MEDLINE、Cochrane Library、Embase、China National Knowledge Infrastructure、VIP 和 Wanfang 等数据库，从开始到 2019 年 7 月 15 日进行了系统评价和荟萃分析。本研究没有语言限制。结果：涉及 936 名参与者的 14 项试验报告和方法学质量较差。我们的荟萃分析表明，与言语和语言治疗 (SLT) 组相比，针灸联合 SLT 可以提高波士顿诊断性失语症检查 (BDAE) 的发生率（OR：0.15，95% 置信区间 [CI]：0.04–0.25 , p = 0.005), 汉语失语症组 (ABC) 的分数，包括重复能力 (SMD: 1.46, 95% CI: 1.24–1.69, p #x3c; 0.00001), 阅读能力 (SMD: 1.57, 95% CI: 1.25-1.90，p＃X3C; 0.00001），写能力（SMD：1.52，95％CI：1.19-1.86，p＃X3C; 0.00001），命名能力（SMD：1.40，95％CI：1.04-1.76，p#x3c; 0.00001）和听力理解能力（SMD：0.57，95% CI：0.22–0.92，p = 0.001）。所有 RCT 都被认为存在偏倚评估的高风险。结论：针灸（单独或结合 SLT）可能对卒中后失语症有效。未来，需要具有准确方法设计和高报告质量的严格临床试验来验证我们的结果。
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