Low-intensity extracorporeal shock wave therapy for male chronic pelvic pain syndrome: a systematic review and meta-analysis

A systematic review of the evidence was conducted to evaluate the efficacy of low-intensity extracorporeal shock wave therapy (LI-ESWT) for patients with chronic pelvic pain syndrome (CPPS). A comprehensive search was undertaken of the Cochrane Register, PubMed, and Embase databases for controlled trials that evaluated patients with CPPS who were treated with LI-ESWT and that were published before August 2019. The National Institutes of Health Chronic Prostatitis Symptom Index (NIH-CPSI) was the most frequently used tool to evaluate the treatment efficacy of LI-ESWT. The NIH-CPSI comprises subscales for pain [using a visual analog scale (VAS)], urinary function, and quality of life (QoL). Six studies analyzing 317 patients were published from 2009 to 2019. The overall meta-analysis of the data indicated that LI-ESWT demonstrated efficacy in the treatment of CPPS at 12 weeks [risk difference (RD): 0.46; 95% confidence interval (CI), 0.28-0.63; P