Acupuncture Shows Hints of Benefit for Vascular Dementia, but Evidence

An umbrella review published in Frontiers in Neuroscience found that acupuncture may improve cognition and daily functioning in vascular dementia, but the certainty of the evidence is low. The analysis covered 16 systematic reviews and meta-analyses drawing on hundreds of randomized controlled trials, focusing specifically on acupuncture modalities for vascular dementia. The study, led by researchers at Guangzhou University of Chinese Medicine with collaborators in New Zealand and Australia, reports that most pooled estimates favored acupuncture. However, nearly all of the benefits relied on evidence graded as low or very low certainty, and review-to-review differences in inclusion criteria, interventions, and outcomes contributed to inconsistent conclusions. Vascular dementia accounts for about 20% of dementia cases globally and roughly 26% among Chinese adults aged 60 and above.