Multicenter, randomised control trial (n=140) comparing traditional acupuncture with medication.
Adult patients diagnosed with migraine without aura who had previously not had prophylactic treatment were recruited from five hospital outpatient departments. They were randomised to two groups in equal numbers: (1) the treatment group had verum acupuncture plus placebo medication and (2) the control group had sham acupuncture plus flunarizine, a drug recommended as a first-line preventive treatment of migraine. The study period of 20 weeks included a baseline observation period of 4 weeks, a treatment period of 4 weeks, and follow-up period of 12 weeks.
Both verum and sham acupuncture groups had three treatment sessions lasting 30 min each week for 4 weeks which were conducted...]]>
A sham-controlled RCT of acupuncture on the day of embryo transfer, n= 635.
A total of 635 patients undergoing IVF or intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) were included. Embryo transfer was accompanied by either acupuncture or sham acupuncture. The acupuncture group were treated at GV20, ST29, PC6, SP8 and LR3 before embryo transfer, and GV20, LI4, SP6, SP10, and ST36 afterwards, all bilaterally except GV20. Depth of needling and method of stimulation were not described. The control group were given the Streitberger needle at the same points. Both interventions were applied for 30 minutes, before and after the embryo transfer. Conventional management of implantation followed one of two well known protocols.
This study (n=560) was designed to compare the effectiveness of real and sham acupuncture on osteoarthritis (OA) knee pain while simultaneously controlling expectation.
Acupuncturists were trained to interact in one of two communication styles: high expectations (such as ‘I think this will work for you’) or neutral expectations (such as ‘it may or may not work for you’). A brochure was given to each patient, written with expectations appropriate to their group. Patients were randomised to one of three communication style groups—waiting list, high or neutral—and nested within style, traditional Chinese acupuncture (TCA) or sham acupuncture twice a week over 6 weeks.
TCA consisted of points...]]>