The acupuncture treatment of low back pain: a randomized controlled study

Coan, R. M.

Wong, G.

Ku, S. L.

Chan, Y. C.

Wang, L.

Ozer, F. T.

Coan, P. L.

The American journal of Chinese medicine

1980

8(43467)

181-189

RCT

Acu Versus Wait List

Acupuncture

Back Pain

Electroacupuncture

Individualized Acupuncture Protocol

Low Back Pain

Pain

RCT

Restricted Modalities, Acupuncture Only

Traditional Diagnosis Based Point Selection

Unspecified Acupuncture Style

Wait-List Control

Low Back Pain, Chronic

The acupuncture treatment situation was beneficial to the majority of people with low back pain. This was shown by the use of short-term controls and long-term controls, although the latter were not intended in the study design. After acupuncture, there was a 51% pain reduction in the average pain score in the Immediate Treatment Group. The short-term controls, the Delayed Treatment Group, had no reduction whatsoever in their pain scores at the comparable followup period. Later, the Delayed Treatment Group bere also treated by acupuncturists, and reported 62% less pain. When these two treatment groups were compared at 40 weeks with long-term controls (Inadequate Treatment Group), the Inadequate Treatment Group still had the same pain scores, on the average, as when they enrolled in the study. Both treatment groups, on the average, had 30% lower pain scores. Furthermore, 58% of the treatment groups felt that they were definitely improved at 40 weeks, while only 11% of the Inadequate Treatment Group felt definitely improved at 40 weeks

Back Pain

1/WK

50

10 Weeks