Table 2 Summary of the overall quality of the body of evidence
Type of outcome measure (population) | Time frame | (Number of studies) Number of participants | Summary of the quality of the evidence | Reasons for downgrading |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Pain (variety of complaints) | On all time points | (7RCTs) 389 | Low evidence: | Risk of bias/imprecision |
MT provides better pain relief than sham | ||||
| Â | Immediate | (3RCTs) 117 | Moderate evidence: | Incons |
MT provides better pain relief than sham | ||||
| Â | Short-term | (4RCTs) 272 | Low evidence: | Risk of bias/imprecision |
MT provides better pain relief than sham | ||||
| Â | Long- term | (1RCT) 62 | Low evidence: | Incons./imprecision |
MT provides better pain relief than sham | ||||
Pain (musculoskeletal disorders) | On all time points | (5RCTs) 208 | Low evidence: | Risk of bias/imprecision |
MT provides better pain relief than sham | ||||
| Â | Immediate | (2RCTs) 73 | Moderate evidence: | imprecision |
MT provides better pain relief than sham | ||||
| Â | Short-term | (3RCTs) 135 | Low evidence: | Risk of bias/imprecision |
MT provides better pain relief than sham | ||||
| Â | Long- term | (1RCT) 62 | Low evidence: | Incons./imprecision |
MT provides better pain relief than | ||||
Pain (neck pain) | Immediate | (2RCTs) 73 | Low evidence: | Incons./imprecision |
MT does not provide better pain relief than sham | ||||
Pain (low back pain) | Short-term | (2RCTs) 126 | Low evidence: | Risk of bias/imprecision |
MT provides better pain relief than sham | ||||
Pain (primary dysmenorrhea) | On all time points | (2RCTs) 181 | Low evidence: | incons./imprecision |
MT does not provide better pain relief than sham | ||||
Pain (chiropractor) | On all time points | (3RCTs) 190 | Very low evidence: | Risk of bias/incons./imprecision |
MT does not provide better pain relief than sham | ||||
Pain (physical therapist) | On all time points | (3RCTs) 137 | Low evidence: | Risk of bias/imprecision |
MT performed by physical therapist provides better pain relief than sham | ||||
Pain (physician) | On all time points | (1RCT) 62 | Low evidence: | incons./imprecision |
MT performed by a physician therapist provides better pain relief than sham | ||||
Disability (muscoloskeletal disorders) | Short term | (6RCTs) 355 | Very low evidence: | Risk of bias/incons./imprecision |
MT does not provide better relief of disability than sham | ||||
Perceived (asthma) recovery (chronic asthma) | Short term | (1RCTs) 31 | Very low evidence: | Risk of bias/incons./imprecision |
MT does not provide better perceived (asthma) recovery than sham |