This systematic review fails to provide conclusive evidence for the effectiveness of moxibustion compared with drug therapy in rheumatic conditions .
Moxibustion , an acupuncture-like intervention , is increasingly used in the management of rheumatic conditions .
The aim of this review is to summarize and critically evaluate the trials testing effectiveness of moxibustion for major rheumatic conditions .
A trial design that generates only ''positive'' results.
In this article , we test the hypothesis that r and omized clinical trials of acupuncture for pain with certain design features ( A + B versus B ) are likely to generate false positive results . Based on electronic search es in six data bases , 13 studies were found that met our inclusion criteria . They all suggested that  acupuncture is effected ( one only showing a positive trend , all others had significant results ) . We conclude that the ' A + B versus B ' design is prone to false positive results and discuss the design features that might prevent or exacerbate this problem
This systematic review fails to provide conclusive evidence for the effectiveness of moxibustion compared with drug therapy in rheumatic conditions .
Moxibustion , an acupuncture-like intervention , is increasingly used in the management of rheumatic conditions .
The aim of this review is to summarize and critically evaluate the trials testing effectiveness of moxibustion for major rheumatic conditions .