Rédacteur : Johan Nguyen

Sommaire

hiccups in cancer patients

Hoquet chez le patient cancéreux : évaluation de l'acupuncture

Article connexe : - hoquet -

1. Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis

1.1. Sutcliffe 2025

Sutcliffe RT, Eche-Ugwu IJ. A Systematic Literature Review of Interventions to Manage Hiccups in Patients With Cancer Undergoing Active Treatment. Cancer Nurs. 2025 Mar 18. https://doi.org/10.1097/NCC.0000000000001448

Backgound Patients with cancer often experience persistent or intractable hiccups, which negatively impact their quality of life. Yet, interventions aimed at managing hiccups among patients with cancer receiving active treatment are lacking.
Objective To describe existing evidence on interventions that address hiccup management in patients with cancer receiving active treatment with curative intent.
Methods Our narrative synthesis review was conducted through a systematic search of 3 electronic databases (CINAHL Complete, PubMed, and HOLLIS) augmented by hand search from January 2003 to July 2023 to retrieve peer-reviewed articles published in English. Our review was guided by PRISMA (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic reviews and Meta-Analyses) and registered through the National Institute for Health Research, International Prospective Register of Systematic Reviews (CRD42023444545).
Results The database searches yielded 2686 records. After removing duplicates and ineligible articles, 13 articles met the inclusion criteria. Most were noninterventional observational studies. The most common pharmacologic interventions were as follows: steroid rotation (replacing dexamethasone with methylprednisolone or omitting dexamethasone), baclofen, and olanzapine. Of these pharmacologic interventions, replacing dexamethasone with another antiemetic was most beneficial in reducing hiccups. Baclofen was also found to be beneficial in reducing chronic or intractable hiccups. Acupuncture was found to be an effective nonpharmacologic intervention.
Conclusions This review identified several promising interventions such as steroid rotation (replacing dexamethasone with methylprednisolone or omitting dexamethasone), baclofen, and acupuncture for hiccup management among patients with cancer undergoing active treatment.

1.2. Choi 2012

Choi TY, Lee MS, Ernst E. Acupuncture for cancer patients suffering from hiccups: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Complement Ther Med. 2012. 20(6):447-55. [159366].

Purpose The objective of this review was to assess the effectiveness of acupuncture for treating hiccups in patients with cancer.
Methods Thirteen databases were searched from their inception through July 2011 without language restrictions. Randomised clinical trials (RCTs) were included if acupuncture was used as the sole treatment or as a part of a combination therapy with conventional drugs for hiccups in cancer patients. Studies were included if they compared acupuncture to placebo, drug therapy or no treatment. Cochrane criteria were used to assess the risk of bias.
Results A total of 5 RCTs met our inclusion criteria. All of the included RCTs were associated with a high risk of bias. The majority of studies suggested favourable effects of acupuncture compared with conventional treatments. A meta-analysis revealed superior response rates for acupuncture compared with intramuscular injections (n=162; RR, 1.87; 95% CI 1.26-2.78; P=0.002; heterogeneity: χ(2)=3.16, P=0. 21, I(2)=37%)..
Conclusion This systematic review provides very limited evidence for the effectiveness of acupuncture compared with the conventional therapy (intramuscular injections) for treating hiccups. The total number, as well as was the methodological quality, of the RCTs included in this review was low.