REVIEW - Bee venom acupuncture for musculoskeletal pain

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J Pain. 2008 Apr;9(4):289-97. Epub 2008 Jan 28.

Bee venom acupuncture for musculoskeletal pain: a review

Lee MS, Pittler MH, Shin BC, Kong JC, Ernst E.

Complementary Medicine, Peninsula Medical School, Universities of

Exeter and Plymouth, Exeter, United Kingdom.

Bee venom (BV) acupuncture (BVA) involves injecting diluted BV into

acupoints and is used for arthritis, pain, and rheumatoid diseases.

The objective of this systematic review was to evaluate the evidence

for the effectiveness of BVA in the treatment of musculoskeletal pain.

Seventeen electronic databases were systematically searched up to

September 2007 with no language restrictions. All randomized clinical

trials (RCTs) of BVA for patients with musculoskeletal pain were

considered for inclusion if they included placebo controls or were

controlled against a comparator intervention. Methodology quality was

assessed and, where possible, statistical pooling of data was

performed. A total of 626 possibly relevant articles were identified,

of which 11 RCTs met our inclusion criteria. Four RCTs that tested the

effects of BVA plus classic acupuncture compared with saline injection

plus classic acupuncture were included in the main meta-analysis. Pain

was significantly lower with BVA plus classic acupuncture than with

saline injection plus classic acupuncture (weighted mean difference:

100-mm visual analog scale, 14.0 mm, 95% CI = 9.5-18.6, P < .001, n =

112; heterogeneity: tau(2) = 0, chi(2) = 1.92, P = .59, I(2) = 0%).

Our results provide suggestive evidence for the effectiveness of BVA

in treating musculoskeletal pain. However, the total number of RCTs

included in the analysis and the total sample size were too small to

draw definitive conclusions. Future RCTs should assess larger patient

samples for longer treatment periods and include appropriate controls.

PERSPECTIVE: Bee venom acupuncture involves injecting diluted BV into

acupoints and is used for arthritis, pain, and rheumatoid diseases. A

meta-analysis produced suggestive evidence for the effectiveness of

BVA in musculoskeletal pain management. However, primary data were

scarce. Future RCTs should assess larger patient samples for longer

treatment periods and include appropriate controls.

PMID: 18226968

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18226968

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