• Ning Gao, Yufeng Guo, and Weiming Wang.
• Department of Acupuncture, Guang' anmen Hospital, China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences, Beijing, China.
• Medicine (Baltimore). 2021 Mar 12; 100 (10): e25140e25140.

BackgroundHuman immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-associated distal symmetric peripheral neuropathy (DSPN) is one of the most frequent neurological complications of HIV infection, and causes pain and dysaesthesias in millions globally. Many individuals with this infection report using acupuncture to manage their symptoms, but evidence supporting the use of acupuncture is limited. This systematic review will assess the effectiveness and safety of acupuncture for patients with HIV-associated DSPN.MethodsDatabases including MEDLINE, EMBASE, the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, Scopus, Web of science, AMED (Allied and Complementary Medicine), the Chinese Biomedical Literature Database, the China National Knowledge Infrastructure, Wanfang Database, VIP Database and clinical trials registers (the WHO International Clinical Trials Registry Platform portal and www.ClinicalTrials.gov) will be electronically searched from inception to December 1, 2020. All randomized controlled trials in English or Chinese without restriction on publication status will be included. Selection of studies, extraction of data, and assessment of studies quality will be independently performed by 2 reviewers. The primary outcome measure will be the change in pain intensity assessed by validated scales. Secondary outcomes include change in neurologic summary scores, quality of life, physical function evaluated by admitted tools, and adverse events related to acupuncture reported in the included trials. If possible, a meta-analysis will be conducted to provide an estimate of the pooled treatment effect using Review Manager 5.3 statistical software. Otherwise, qualitative descriptive analysis will be given. The results will be presented as the risk ratio for binary data and the mean difference (MD) or standardized MD for continuous data.ResultsThe results of the systematic review will be disseminated via publication in a peer-reviewed journal and presented at a relevant conference.ConclusionThis review will be the first review entirely focused on assessing the effectiveness and safety of acupuncture for HIV-associated DSPN.Prospero Registration NumberCRD42020210994.Copyright © 2021 the Author(s). Published by Wolters Kluwer Health, Inc.

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