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Veterinary world2025; 18(1); 60-66; doi: 10.14202/vetworld.2025.60-66

Effectiveness of acupuncture for equine laminitis: Systematic review and meta-analysis.

Abstract: In the past 20 years, acupuncture has been utilized as an alternative therapy for equine laminitis despite a lack of clinical evidence to support its effectiveness. Information from previous studies needs to be evaluated holistically to verify the effectiveness of acupuncture. This meta-analysis aimed to comprehensively investigate the effectiveness of acupuncture as a treatment for laminitis in horses. Unassigned: A total of 7 studies out of 145 were selected in the PubMed, Scopus, Cochrane Library, and ProQuest databases using the keywords "equine laminitis," "acupuncture," "horses," and "lameness score." Articles were selected following the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis flow diagram, and the extracted data were analyzed using OpenMEE software to determine Hedges' d effect size and Log Odds Ratio. Unassigned: As a result, this meta-analysis study reported that acupuncture improves horses with laminitis (Odds Ratio = 2.254; 95% CI = 1.167-4.355) and has a favorable effect on lameness scores (mean difference = -5.008; 95% CI = -8.094--1.923). Unassigned: This meta-analysis enhanced the clinical studies demonstrating that twice-weekly acupuncture performed for 4 weeks consecutively can ameliorate lameness scores and a horse's potential for recovery. These investigations have led to the implementation of dry needling, hemo-acupuncture, aqua-acupuncture, and electroacupuncture as alternate treatments for equine laminitis.
Copyright: © Fikri, et al.
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Publication Date: 2025-01-09 PubMed ID: 40041523PubMed Central: PMC11873381DOI: 10.14202/vetworld.2025.60-66Google Scholar: Lookup
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Summary

This research summary has been generated with artificial intelligence and may contain errors and omissions. Refer to the original study to confirm details provided. Submit correction.

This research paper investigates and confirms the effectiveness of acupuncture as a treatment method for horses suffering from a disease condition known as laminitis, which causes lameness in horses. The findings of the research are mainly based on the deduction drawn from the analysis of seven previous studies.

Objective of Research

The researchers embarked on this study with the principal objective of

  • Assessing the effectiveness of acupuncture as a therapy for laminitis in horses.

Research Method

The researchers employed a systematic review and meta-analysis to carry out the study:

  • A total of 145 studies were searched in the PubMed, Scopus, Cochrane Library, and ProQuest databases. The keywords used for the search were “equine laminitis,” “acupuncture,” “horses,” and “lameness score.”
  • Out of these, only seven studies were selected for a further detailed investigation following the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis flow diagram.
  • The data extracted from these selected studies were thoroughly analyzed using OpenMEE software to determine Hedges’ d effect size and Log Odds Ratio.

Research Findings

The findings from the meta-analysis study suggest that:

  • Acupuncture has a supportive effect on the treatment of equine laminitis. It was found effective in improving the condition of horses with laminitis.
  • Acupuncture has a beneficial impact on lameness scores.
  • Consistent acupuncture treatment, done twice weekly for four weeks, promotes a horse’s potential for recovery and better lameness scores.

Implementation of Findings

The findings of this study have foregrounded:

  • An increased application of alternative acupuncture treatment methods for equine laminitis such as dry needling, hemo-acupuncture, aqua-acupuncture, and electroacupuncture.

Cite This Article

APA
Fikri F, Purnomo A, Maslamama ST, Purnama MTE. (2025). Effectiveness of acupuncture for equine laminitis: Systematic review and meta-analysis. Vet World, 18(1), 60-66. https://doi.org/10.14202/vetworld.2025.60-66

Publication

Veterinary world
ISSN: 0972-8988
NlmUniqueID: 101504872
Country: India
Language: English
Volume: 18
Issue: 1
Pages: 60-66

Researcher Affiliations

Fikri, Faisal
  • Division of Veterinary Medicine, Department of Health and Life Sciences, Faculty of Health, Medicine and Life Sciences, Universitas Airlangga, Banyuwangi, East Java, 68425, Indonesia.
  • Research Group of Animal Biomedical and Conservation, Faculty of Health, Medicine, and Life Sciences, Universitas Airlangga, Banyuwangi, East Java, 68425, Indonesia.
Purnomo, Agus
  • Department of Veterinary Surgery and Radiology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Universitas Gadjah Mada, Yogyakarta, 55281, Indonesia.
Maslamama, Salipudin Tasil
  • Department of Agricultural Biotechnology, Faculty of Agriculture, Eskisehir Osmangazi University, Eskisehir, 26040, Türkiye.
Purnama, Muhammad Thohawi Elziyad
  • Division of Veterinary Medicine, Department of Health and Life Sciences, Faculty of Health, Medicine and Life Sciences, Universitas Airlangga, Banyuwangi, East Java, 68425, Indonesia.
  • Research Group of Animal Biomedical and Conservation, Faculty of Health, Medicine, and Life Sciences, Universitas Airlangga, Banyuwangi, East Java, 68425, Indonesia.
  • Department of Biology, Graduate School of Natural and Applied Sciences, Eskisehir Osmangazi University, Eskisehir, 26040, Türkiye.

Conflict of Interest Statement

The authors declare that they have no competing interests.

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Citations

This article has been cited 1 times.
  1. Purnama MTE, Fikri F, Çalışkan H, Wicaksono AP. Efficacy of acupuncture in racehorses: A review. Open Vet J 2025;15(10):4789-4796.
    doi: 10.5455/OVJ.2025.v15.i10.1pubmed: 41246440google scholar: lookup
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