Effects of different complementary therapies on chronic kidney disease-associated pruritus: a systematic…

Systematic reviewFrontiers in medicine· 2026

Effects of different complementary therapies on chronic kidney disease-associated pruritus: a systematic review and network meta-analysis.

Shu He, Wenxia Huang, Yan Zhou, Siyu Du

NephrologySystematic reviewTreatmentQ1IF 3.4

Herbal medicinal bath most reliably eases chronic kidney disease-associated pruritus symptoms

Effects of different complementary therapies on chronic kidney disease-associated pruritus: a systematic review and network meta-analysis.

Shu He … Siyu Du

Frontiers in medicine · 2026 · Q1 in General Medicine

Background

Chronic kidney disease-associated pruritus is one of the most common concomitant symptoms in patients with end-stage renal disease.

Purpose

To compare the efficacy and safety of different complementary therapies in alleviating symptoms of chronic kidney disease-associated pruritus.

Methods

Randomized controlled trials published in the database from database inception through December 2025 were included.

n = 1,968 patients

Results

eases pruritus most and stays reliable when weak studies are excluded

SMD -2.40 (95% CI -3.60 to -1.21)

null 0

-3.60

-1.21

CI excludes the null - significant

More results

However, when the 9 excluded high-risk-of-bias studies were re-included in a sensitivity analysis, the effects of Acupuncture and other therapies were attenuated and no longer statistically significant.

“

Conclusion · 1 of 2

Based on the efficacy and stability of the current evidence, Herbal Medicinal Bath appears to be the most reliable complementary therapy.

Conclusion · 2 of 2

Acupuncture shows potential but requires further confirmation through more high-quality, large-scale randomized controlled trials.

Effects of different complementary therapies on chronic kidney disease-associated pruritus: a systematic review and network meta-analysis.

Effects of different complementary therapies on chronic kidney disease-associated pruritus: a systematic review and network meta-analysis.

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