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

ObjectiveThe 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).DataThis 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).SourcesSystematic 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 selectionAll 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.ConclusionsIn 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.