Twelve RCTs (n=1,096: 418 received AS and 609 received medication or controls). There were some discrepancies between numbers reported in the text and those in the tables; this abstract presents the numbers reported in the text. Sample sizes ranged from 40 to 187 participants.
The quality scores ranged from 1 to 4 for R criteria, and from 1.5 to 4 for T criteria. Random allocation was reported in all 12 trials, and concealment was attempted in 10 trials. Two trials used a single-blind (participant only) method, but otherwise a double-blind method was used for all trials.
Overall (12 studies).
All studies reported fewer incidences of vomiting and nausea in children receiving AS compared with controls; the RRs were 0.69 (95% CI: 0.59, 0.80, p<0.0001) and 0.59 (95% CI: 0.46, 0.76, p<0.0001), respectively. There was evidence of publication bias from Egger’s test and funnel plots.
Acupressure (3 studies).
The proportion of children vomiting after acupressure was significantly lower than in the control groups; the RR was 0.69 (95% CI: 0.55, 0.87, p=0.002). The greatest relief was reported for the K-K9 acupoint, but no data were provided.
Acupuncture (6 studies).
The incidence of vomiting was significantly lower in the 6 studies comparing acupuncture with a control; the pooled RR was 0.42 (95% CI: 0.29, 0.67, p<0.0001). The 4 studies using acupuncture alone reported an RR of 0.53 (95% CI: 0.32, 0.88, p=0.015), while the 2 studies using laser acupuncture reported an RR of 0.24 (95% CI: 0.11, 0.53, p=0.0004). One study using acupuncture and acupressure indicated no difference in vomiting incidences between the two groups. Only one study reported proportions of nausea: 32% of children receiving acupuncture and 56% of controls.
Electrical stimulation (2 studies).
There were no significant differences between the ETS group and controls for incidence of vomiting.
Medication (3 studies).
Significantly fewer incidences of vomiting were reported in children receiving medication compared with controls; the RR was 0.42 (95% CI: 0.22, 0.78, p=0.0056). There were no significant differences between the medication and AS groups.