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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jun 9, 2026

Heat-sensitive Moxibustion as a Traditional Chinese Medicine Therapy for Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease Combined with Insomnia
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Heat-sensitive Moxibustion as a Traditional Chinese Medicine Therapy for Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease Combined with Insomnia

Published on: May 30, 2025

Moxibustion for treating pain: a systematic review.

Myeong Soo Lee1, Tae-Young Choi, Jung Won Kang

  • 1Division of Standard Research, Korea Institute of Oriental Medicine, Daejeon, South Korea. drmslee@gmail.com

The American Journal of Chinese Medicine
|September 8, 2010
PubMed
Summary

Limited randomized clinical trials (RCTs) suggest moxibustion may reduce pain, particularly for osteoarthritis. However, most studies have a high risk of bias, necessitating further rigorous research on moxibustion for pain management.

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Area of Science:

  • Integrative Medicine
  • Pain Management
  • Evidence-Based Practice

Background:

  • Moxibustion, a traditional therapy, is explored for pain relief.
  • The evidence for moxibustion's effectiveness in pain management requires systematic evaluation.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To assess the available evidence on moxibustion's effectiveness for pain treatment.
  • To identify high-quality randomized clinical trials (RCTs) evaluating moxibustion for pain.

Main Methods:

  • A comprehensive search of 14 electronic databases was conducted.
  • Included were RCTs on direct or indirect moxibustion for any type of pain in humans.
  • Exclusion criteria targeted studies with unproven comparators or where pain was not the primary symptom.

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Last Updated: Jun 9, 2026

Heat-sensitive Moxibustion as a Traditional Chinese Medicine Therapy for Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease Combined with Insomnia
04:59

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Published on: May 30, 2025

Main Results:

  • Only four RCTs met all inclusion criteria; others were of poor quality.
  • Two RCTs indicated significant pain reduction with indirect moxibustion for osteoarthritis compared to drug therapy.
  • Two additional RCTs suggested benefits of moxibustion for pain in scleroma and herpes zoster.

Conclusions:

  • Few high-quality RCTs exist to support moxibustion for pain management.
  • Most current trials exhibit a high risk of bias, limiting definitive conclusions.
  • More rigorous research is essential to establish the efficacy of moxibustion in treating pain.