The efficacy and safety of transcutaneous electrical acupoint stimulation (TEAS) for postoperative pain in laparoscopy: A protocol for systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.

Background With the promotion of the concept of "minimally invasive" surgery, the advantages of laparoscopic surgery are increasingly manifested. However, the postoperative pain of laparoscopic surgery brings difficulties and challenges to patients' rehabilitation. Transcutaneous electrical acupoint stimulation (TEAS) is a non-invasive treatment, which can exert the dual efficacy of acupuncture and electrical stimulation. The efficacy and safety of TEAS for postoperative pain after laparoscopy based on randomized controlled trials (RCTs) need to further evaluate. Methods A comprehensive and systematic literature searching will mainly perform on 7 electronic databases (PubMed, the Cochrane Library, Embase, China National Knowledge Infrastructure, Chongqing VIP Information, WanFang Data, and Chinese Biomedical Database) from their inception up to November 30, 2020. We will also search for ongoing or unpublished studies from other websites (eg, PROSPERO, ClinicalTrials.gov, and Chinese Clinical Trial Registry) and do manual retrieval for potential gray literature. Only the relevant RCTs published in English or Chinese were included. Two independent investigators will independently complete literature selection, assessment of risk bias, and data extraction, the disagreements will be discussed with the third party for final decisions. The primary outcome measures: the pain intensity (eg, VAS) and the consumption of postoperative analgesics. The secondary outcome measures: the postoperative quality of life, the duration of hospitalization, and the incidence of adverse reactions and serious events. Assessment of bias risk will follow the Cochrane risk of bias tool. Data processing will be conducted by Stata 15.0 software. Results We will evaluate the efficacy and safety of TEAS for postoperative pain after laparoscopy based on RCTs. Conclusion This study can provide more comprehensive and strong evidence of whether TEAS is efficacy and safe for postoperative pain in laparoscopic surgery.