Presentation (CTI)

OBJECTIVES: Drug addiction is a major global health problem marked by compulsive drug-seeking and profound neuropsychiatric disturbances. This systematic review and network meta-analysis aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of various acupuncture-related therapies for managing drug addiction.
METHODS: Overall, 10 databases were searched for acupuncture-related therapies for drug addiction from inception to December 20, 2025. Methodological quality was assessed using Cochrane Handbook risk of bias 2.0. Pairwise meta-analyses were performed using RevMan 5.4 software and the network meta-analyses using R software.
RESULTS: A total of 35 randomized controlled trials encompassing 15 intervention types with 2,812 participants were included. The most frequently targeted acupoints were PC6, ST36, and SP6, while commonly used auricular points included TF4 (Shenmen), AH6a (Jiaogan), and CO14 (lung). The network meta-analysis results indicated that the most effective interventions for withdrawal symptoms were transcutaneous electric acupoint stimulation, manual acupuncture (MA), and auricular acupuncture (AA) combined with usual care. For depression, MA combined with usual care, electro acupuncture, and usual care alone were the most effective. For anxiety, AA combined with usual care, Western medicine, and usual care were ranked the highest in terms of efficiency.
CONCLUSIONS: Acupuncture combined with usual care shows superior efficacy in managing overall symptoms of drug addiction, although the optimal approach may vary by specific symptom type. MA combined with usual care was particularly effective for depression, while AA combined with usual care was most effective for anxiety