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59/100

✓ Peer-reviewed alzhub usefulness score 59 out of 100. Digital health tools

Topic: Risk, prevention and care in population studies

Background Almost half of mild cognitive impairment (MCI) patients progress to dementia, which is associated with decreased quality of life and obstacles to independent living. Relevant management is expected to prevent MCI patients from progressing to dementia. In recent years, electroacupuncture (EA) has been used to treat various kinds of neurological disorders including MCI. This study evaluates the use of EA for MCI patients to increase cognitive function through a comparison with Western medications. Methods Randomized controlled trials (RCT) or systematical reviews (SR) of EA versus Western medications for MCI were searched using the following 10 databases: Pubmed, Cochrane Library, CINAHL, EMBASE, China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI), National Digital Science Library (NDSL), Journal of Oriental Neuropsychiatry (JON), Korean Medical Database (KMBASE), KoreaMed, and OASIS, from October 2007 to August 2017, without language restriction. A methodological quality assessment of RCTs or SRs that met inclusion criteria was conducted using Cochrane Risk of bias (RoB) tool and a meta-analysis by RevMan (Review Manager) 5.3.5 version of Cochrane collaboration. Results Five RCTs with 257 patients met inclusion criteria and those were randomly divided into two groups: the EA group (n = 103) and Western medications group (n = 154). The methodological quality of the included studies showed high risk or/and unclear of risk of bias. The meta-analysis of five studies reported that the EA group was better than the Western medications group, improving the Mini Mental State Examination (MMSE) score by 0.65 [95% CI 0.28~1.01] higher mean difference, Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) score by 0.66 [95% CI 0.00~1.32] higher mean difference. Adverse effects were not reported in the selected studies. Conclusion Electroacupuncture was an effective treatment for MCI patients by improving cognitive function. However, the included studies presented a low methodological quality and no adverse effects were reported. Thus, further comprehensive studies with a design in depth are needed to derive significant results.

Cite this study APA, Vancouver, BibTeX · download .bib or .ris

APA 7th

Kim, H., Kim, H. K., Kim, S. Y., Kim, Y. I., Yoo, H. R., & Jung, I. C. (2019). Cognitive improvement effects of electro-acupuncture for the treatment of MCI compared with Western medications: a systematic review and Meta-analysis. BMC complementary and alternative medicine. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12906-018-2407-2

Vancouver

Kim H, Kim HK, Kim SY, Kim YI, Yoo HR, Jung IC. Cognitive improvement effects of electro-acupuncture for the treatment of MCI compared with Western medications: a systematic review and Meta-analysis. BMC complementary and alternative medicine. 2019. doi:10.1186/s12906-018-2407-2. PMID: 30621676.

BibTeX

@article{kim2019-30621676,
  author  = {Kim, H. and Kim, H. K. and Kim, S. Y. and Kim, Y. I. and Yoo, H. R. and Jung, I. C.},
  title   = {{Cognitive improvement effects of electro-acupuncture for the treatment of MCI compared with Western medications: a systematic review and Meta-analysis}},
  journal = {BMC complementary and alternative medicine},
  year    = {2019},
  doi     = {10.1186/s12906-018-2407-2},
  pmid    = {30621676},
  url     = {https://doi.org/10.1186/s12906-018-2407-2}
}

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Key findings

Background Almost half of mild cognitive impairment (MCI) patients progress to dementia, which is associated with decreased quality of life and obstacles to independent living.
Methods Randomized controlled trials (RCT) or systematical reviews (SR) of EA versus Western medications for MCI were searched using the following 10 databases: Pubmed, Cochrane Library, CINAHL, EMBASE, China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI), National Digital Science Library (NDSL), Journal of Oriental Neuropsychiatry (JON), Korean Medical Database (KMBASE), KoreaMed, and OASIS, from October 2007 to August 2017, without language restriction.
Results Five RCTs with 257 patients met inclusion criteria and those were randomly divided into two groups: the EA group (n = 103) and Western medications group (n = 154).
Thus, further comprehensive studies with a design in depth are needed to derive significant results.

Why it matters

This meta-analysis of five randomized controlled trials with 257 patients compared electroacupuncture with Western medications for mild cognitive impairment. It suggests electroacupuncture may affect cognitive function in MCI, but the evidence comes from a small set of trials and does not establish a cure or prevention for Alzheimer's disease.

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Study details

Study designmeta-analysis
Participants103
Evidence strengthHigh

How this study scored 59/100

Published in a peer-reviewed journal, and it is a meta-analysis pooling many studies. Scored zero for effect reported because the record does not state it.

Component	Points	Why
Journal tier	7 / 10	Tier 3 — peer-reviewed journal (BMC complementary and alternative medicine)
Journal's citation record	2 / 4	BMC Complementary and Alternative Medicine: journal h-index 155 (OpenAlex, 2026-10-29)
Study design	12 / 12	A meta-analysis pooling many studies
Strength of evidence	5 / 5	Rated “high” in our summary
Peer-review validation	10 / 10	Peer-reviewed. Published as an article in a named peer-reviewed journal.
How recent	2 / 5	2019 — within 10 year(s) of the newest study here
Sample size	2 / 4	103 participants
Effect reported	0 / 3	No effect size reported — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0)
Studied in people	3 / 3	Studied in people (participant count stated)
Randomised / blinded	0 / 2	A review of other studies — randomisation is not credited here
Times cited	4 / 7	Cited 54 times (OpenAlex, 2026-10-10)
Citations per year	2 / 5	6.0 citations a year over 9 year(s) since 2019
Impact for its field and year	2 / 6	Cited 1.9× the average for papers of its field and year (OpenAlex FWCI)
Cited by studies here	0 / 6	No other study in this library cites it
Still being cited	2 / 4	Cited 22 times in 2024–2026 (2026 still in progress; OpenAlex)
Senior author's track record	1 / 4	Last-listed author In Chul Jung: h-index 19 (OpenAlex, whole career)
Institution's track record	0 / 3	Daejeon University: institution h-index 122 (OpenAlex)
Multi-centre collaboration	1 / 3	OpenAlex lists 2 institution(s) in 1 country
Indexed in PubMed	2 / 2	Indexed in PubMed (PMID 30621676)
Free to read	2 / 2	Free to read
Total	59 / 100	—

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