| | First author (ref) (year) | Acupuncture method | Regime | Acupuncture points | Deqi | Rationales for acupuncture points | Number of CMSP | Adverse events |
| | Functional recovery | | | | | | | | | Chen [3] (1995) | Individualized by injured spinal level | EA (1-2 Hz, 1 session = once a day, 30 min, 6 times a week, total 48 treatments) | Injured spinal level, upper 1 point and lower 1 point of Governer vessel of injured level (inter spinous process)
| n.r. | TCM theory | 1 | n.r. | | Wong [4] (2003) | Fixed | EA + AA (75 Hz, 10 mV, 1 session = 30 min, 5 times a week, till discharge) | EA: bilateral SI3, BL62
AA: 4 acupoints related to the spinal cord at the antihelix, helix, and lower portion of the ear-back areas
| Considered | n.r. | 1 | n.r. | | Cui [5] (2004) | Fixed | EA (1 session = once a day, 30 min for 1 month, total 90 or 180 treatments) | Arm: HT1, LU5, PC3, HT3
Leg: SP12, BL37 or GB30, BL40
Other peroneal nerve stimulation point (no reports about where EA was applied) | Considered | TCM theory | 1 | n.r. | | Xu [6] (2004) | Fixed + individualized by symptoms | EA (1 Hz, 1 session = once a day, 30 min for 1 month, 7 days’ rest, total 150 treatments) | EX-B2 + LI4, LI11, LI15, TE5, GB30, GB31, GB34, GB39, ST36, ST41, BL60, LR3 (limb dyskinesia) or SP6, SP9, BL25, eight-liao (evacuation disorder) | n.r. | TCM theory | 2 | n.r. | | Chen [7] (2005) | Fixed | EA + AA (EA; 1–5 Hz, 1 session = once a day, 30 min, 6 days a week for 3 months, session interval 1-2 weeks, till discharge, AA; 1 session = once a day, 10 times, total 2-3 session, each ear alternately) | EA: bilateral SI3, BL62
AA: brain, subcortex, sympathetic, Shenmen | Impossible in SCI patients because of sensory impairment (+) | TCM theory | 1 | No adverse events (+) | | Gu [8] (2005)a | Fixed + individualized by symptoms | EA (1 Hz, 3–5 V, 1 session = once a day, 30 min for 1 month, 1 week rest, total 150 treatments) | EX-B2, LI15, LI11, TE5, LI4, GB30, GB31, GB34, ST36, GB39, BL60, ST41, LR3 (EA applied to major extremity points) + eight-liao, BL25, SP6, GB34 (evacuation disorders)
| n.r. | TCM theory | 2 | n.r. | | Ma [9] (2005) | Fixed | EA + AT (scalp EA; 5 min, body AT; 25 min, once a day, total 168 sessions) | Scalp EA: MS6 (motor area), MS14 (equilibrium area)
Body AT: LI10, LI11, TE8, SI5 (arm), LR12, GB34, GB39, BL54, BL60, LR3 (leg) | Considered (authors did not describe, but might be considered)
| TCM theory | 1 | n.r. | Sheng [10] (2009)
| Fixed | EA (1 session = once a day, 30 min for 10 days, 2 days’ rest, total 70 treatments) | EX-B2, LI4, LI11, LI15, TE5, ST31, ST32, ST36, GB34 | n.r | TCM theory | 1 | n.r. |
| | Bladder dysfunction | | | | | | | | | Huang [11] (2002) | Fixed | EA (continuous wave, 1 session = 30 min, for 5 days, 3 days’ rest, total 5–20 treatments) | Bilateral BL54, ST28, BL32, BL34, T12-L2 Huatuojiaji (EX-B2), SP9, SP6 | Considered (authors did not describe, but might be considered)
| TCM theory | 1 | n.r. | | Zhang [12] (2008) | Fixed | EA (2 Hz, 6 V, 1 session = once a day, 30 min for 2 weeks, total 12 treatments)
| Bilateral BL23, BL35 | n.r. | TCM theory | 1 | n.r. | | Zhou [13] (2007) | Fixed | EA (continuous wave, 80 Hz, 20 mA, 1 session = once a day for 15 days, 5 days’ rest, total 30 treatments) | Bilateral BL31, BL32, BL33, BL34, BL35 | Considered | TCM theory | 1 | n.r. | Cheng [14] (1998)
| Fixed | EA (20–30 Hz, 30–50 mA, 1 session = 15 min, 4~5 sessions each week, till their bladders were balanced)
| CV3, CV4, BL32 (bilateral) | Considered | TCM theory | 2 | n.r. | | Gu [15] (2005)b | Fixed + individualized by symptoms
| EA (continuous wave, 1 session = once a day, 30 min for 2 weeks, total 14–56 treatments) | eight-liao (EA) + BL23, CV6, BL20, BL22 (deficiency syndrome) or SP6, BL28, SP9, CV3 (excess syndrome) | Considered | TCM theory | 1 | n.r. | Liu [16] (2009)
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Fixed | EA (1 session = once a day, 30 min for 15 days, total 60 treatments) | EX-B2 | n.r. | TCM theory | 1 | n.r. |
| | Pain condition | | | | | | | | | Dyson-Hudson [17] (2007) | Fixed + individualized by symptoms | AT (1 session = 20 min, twice a week, total 10 treatments) | Local points (chosen 6 points according to shoulder pain symptoms): LI14, LI15, LI16, TE13, TE14, TE15, GB21, SI9, SI10, SI11, SI12, SI13, SI14, SI15, LU1, LU2, PC2
Distal points (chosen 2 points according to local points used): LI2, LI4, LI10, LI11, LI18, SJ3, SI6, LU3, GV14, GB20, BL 10, BL11
Ashi points (1~4 points per treatment) | Considered | TCM theory | 1 | Minimal adverse effect | | Dyson-Hudson [18] (2001) | Fixed + individualized by symptoms | AT (1 session = 20~30 min, twice a week, total 10 treatments) | Local points (chosen 6 points according to shoulder pain symptoms):
LI14, LI15, LI16, TE13, TE14, TE15, GB21, SI9, SI10, SI11, SI12, SI13, SI14, SI15, LU1, LU2, PC2
Distal points (chosen 2 points according to local points used):
LI2, LI4, LI10, LI11, LI18, SJ3, SI6, LU3, GV14, GB20, BL 10, BL11
Ashi points (1~4 points per treatment) | Considered | TCM theory | 1 | No adverse events (+) |
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