Yuan, Ting, Xiong, Jun, Wang, Xue et al. · Evidence-based complementary and alternative medicine : eCAM · 2021 · DOI
This study reviewed 29 research papers that used a statistical method called network meta-analysis to compare different acupuncture and moxibustion treatments. The researchers assessed how well these papers were designed and reported their findings. They found that most papers had medium quality, with some having significant gaps in how they explained their methods and results.
This quality assessment is relevant to ME/CFS patients because chronic fatigue syndrome was among the conditions studied in these acupuncture network meta-analyses. Understanding the reliability and transparency of research methodology helps patients and clinicians evaluate the trustworthiness of evidence before considering acupuncture as a treatment option.
This study does not evaluate whether acupuncture is actually effective for ME/CFS or any other condition—it only assesses the quality of the research methodology and reporting. It also does not establish causation; rather, it identifies methodological weaknesses that limit confidence in conclusions drawn by previous studies. The presence of medium-quality studies does not confirm or refute any acupuncture treatment claims.
About the PEM badge: “PEM required” means post-exertional malaise was an explicit required diagnostic criterion for participant inclusion in this study — not that PEM was studied, observed, or discussed. Studies using criteria that do not require PEM (e.g. Fukuda, Oxford) are tagged “PEM not required”. How the atlas works →
The first block is for the primary paper and is the citation you should use in research work. The atlas-snapshot line only applies if you are specifically referring to this atlas’s reading of the paper on the date shown.
Primary citation
Yuan, Ting, Xiong, Jun, Wang, Xue, Yang, Jun, Jiang, Yunfeng, Zhou, Xiaohong, et al. (2021). The Quality of Methodological and Reporting in Network Meta-Analysis of Acupuncture and Moxibustion: A Cross-Sectional Survey.. Evidence-based complementary and alternative medicine : eCAM. https://doi.org/10.1155/2021/2672173
BibTeX
@article{mecfsatlas-yuan-2021-quality-methodological,
author = {Yuan, Ting and Xiong, Jun and Wang, Xue and Yang, Jun and Jiang, Yunfeng and Zhou, Xiaohong and Liao, Kai and Xu, Lingling},
title = {The Quality of Methodological and Reporting in Network Meta-Analysis of Acupuncture and Moxibustion: A Cross-Sectional Survey.},
journal = {Evidence-based complementary and alternative medicine : eCAM},
year = {2021},
doi = {10.1155/2021/2672173},
note = {PubMed: 33505490},
url = {https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/yuan-2021-quality-methodological},
}Atlas snapshot reference
ME/CFS Atlas. Generator v1 / Scanner v1.4 / policy v0.1. Accessed 2026-05-28. https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/yuan-2021-quality-methodological
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