Moxibustion Is A Safe Addition To Rheumatoid Arthritis Care

This review, published in the European Journal of Integrative Medicine, examined whether different types of moxibustion can help people with rheumatoid arthritis (RA), a long-lasting disease where the immune system attacks the joints, leading to pain, swelling, and disability. Moxibustion is a traditional Chinese medicine technique that involves burning a small amount of dried plant material called moxa on or near the skin to warm specific points on the body.

Researchers looked at 78 randomized controlled trials involving nearly 5,900 participants. They compared nine common moxibustion methods combined with conventional RA treatments, such as anti-inflammatory drugs and disease-modifying medicines. The study used a method called network meta-analysis, which can evaluate multiple treatments at once, even if they were not directly compared in the same trial.

The results showed that heat-sensitive moxibustion combined with standard therapy had the most promising effects for improving overall disease activity and reducing symptoms. Moxa cone moxibustion worked best for lowering pain levels measured by a visual scale and was more effective than several other types, including warm needle and direct moxibustion. Indirect moxibustion was especially good at reducing morning stiffness and levels of C-reactive protein, a marker of inflammation. Governor vessel moxibustion showed the lowest rate of side effects, which were generally mild.

Importantly, no serious adverse events were reported across all studies, suggesting moxibustion is a safe treatment option when used properly. However, the authors noted that most studies were not very large or of the highest quality. To be confident in these findings, more rigorous and well-designed research involving larger groups of patients is needed. Overall, this review highlights moxibustion as a potentially helpful and safe addition to standard rheumatoid arthritis care.