Efficacy Of Acupressure As A Pain Management Tool For Knee Osteoarthritis Among Geriatric Patients: A Meta Analysis

Abstract

Background-Acupressure is a complementary treatment that uses fingers and other acupressure tools to stimulate acupoints and maintains the balance of energy. There are several trails have reported its effectiveness in relieving pain. Purpose-This systematic review is to critically assess the effect of acupressure on knee osteoarthritis and its symptoms. Methods-Databases of the Cochrane library, PubMed/MEDLINE, and google scholar were searched from their establishment until September 30, 2022. All the Randomized Controlled Trials [RCTs] that had compared the use of acupressure with either placebo or non-intervention for relieving the symptoms of knee osteoarthritis were included in the study. Results-The meta-analysis showed that acupressure has equivalent effects in reducing pain [p = 0.46] and physical function [p =0.005], as compared to control group. Conclusion- Acupressure could provide significant clinical benefits to osteoarthritis of knee for a short-term by pain reduction improvement in physical function and also reduction in stiffness as an added benefits on reduction in psychological illness such as anxiety, depression, and stress.