Clinical Evaluation of Acupuncture as Treatment for Complications of Cerebrovascular Accidents: A Randomized, Sham-Controlled, Subject- and Assessor-Blind Trial.
Author: Liao HY1,2, Ho WC3, Chen CC4,5, Lin JG4, Chang CC2, Chen LY2, Lee DC6, Lee YC1,2,7
Affiliation:
1College of Chinese Medicine, Graduate Institute of Acupuncture Science, China Medical University, Taichung 404, Taiwan.
2Department of Acupuncture, China Medical University Hospital, Taichung 404, Taiwan.
3Department of Public Health, China Medical University, Taichung 404, Taiwan.
4College of Chinese Medicine, China Medical University, Taichung 404, Taiwan.
5Department of Neurosurgery, China Medical University Hospital, Taichung 404, Taiwan.
6Department of Information Management, Da-Yeh University, Changhua 500, Taiwan.
7Research Center for Chinese Medicine & Acupuncture, China Medical University, Taichung 404, Taiwan.
Conference/Journal: Evid Based Complement Alternat Med.
Date published: 2017
Other:
Volume ID: 2017 , Pages: 7498763 , Special Notes: doi: 10.1155/2017/7498763. Epub 2017 Mar 20. , Word Count: 193
Background and Purpose. The effect of acupuncture as treatment for poststroke complications is questionable. We performed a randomized, sham-controlled double-blind study to investigate it. Methods. Patients with first-time acute stroke were randomized to receive 24 sessions of either real or sham acupuncture during an eight-week period. The primary outcome measure was change in National Institute of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS) score. Secondary outcome measures included changes in Barthel Index (BI), Instrumental Activities of Daily Living (IADL), Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HAM-D), and Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) for pain scores. Results. Of the 52 patients who were randomized to receive acupuncture (n = 28) or placebo (n = 24), 10 patients in the acupuncture group and 9 patients in the placebo group failed to complete the treatment. In total, 18 patients in the acupuncture group and 15 patients in the control group completed the treatment course. Reduction in pain was significantly greater in the acupuncture group than in the control group (p value = 0.04). There were no significant differences in the other measures between the two groups. Conclusions. Acupuncture provided more effective poststroke pain relief than sham acupuncture treatment. However, acupuncture had no better effect on neurological, functional, and psychological improvement.
PMID: 28408941 PMCID: PMC5376930 DOI: 10.1155/2017/7498763
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