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Comment
. 2014 Mar 5;311(9):955-6.
doi: 10.1001/jama.2013.285478.

Acupuncture for chronic pain

Andrew J Vickers  1 , Klaus Linde  2
Affiliations
Comment

Acupuncture for chronic pain

Andrew J Vickers et al. JAMA. .

Abstract

Clinical question: Is acupuncture associated with reduced pain outcomes for patients with chronic pain compared with sham-acupuncture (placebo) or no-acupuncture control?

Bottom line: Acupuncture is associated with improved pain outcomes compared with sham-acupuncture and no-acupuncture control, with response rates of approximately 30% for no acupuncture, 42.5% for sham acupuncture, and 50% for acupuncture.

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Figures

Fig 1
Fig 1
Results of the individual patient data meta-analysis of acupuncture versus sham and versus no acupuncture, as standardized mean difference. A standardized mean difference of 0.42, for instance, means that pain scores were 0.42 standard deviations lower in patients undergoing acupuncture compared to controls. These differences are converted to clinically meaningful statistics in the text.
Fig 2
Fig 2
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Comment on

  • Acupuncture for chronic pain: individual patient data meta-analysis.
    Vickers AJ, Cronin AM, Maschino AC, Lewith G, MacPherson H, Foster NE, Sherman KJ, Witt CM, Linde K; Acupuncture Trialists' Collaboration. Vickers AJ, et al. Arch Intern Med. 2012 Oct 22;172(19):1444-53. doi: 10.1001/archinternmed.2012.3654. Arch Intern Med. 2012. PMID: 22965186 Free PMC article.

References

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    1. Vickers AJ, Cronin AM, Maschino AC, et al. Acupuncture for chronic pain: individual patient data meta-analysis. Archives of internal medicine. 2012 Oct 22;172(19):1444–1453. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Chou R, Qaseem A, Snow V, et al. Diagnosis and treatment of low back pain: a joint clinical practice guideline from the American College of Physicians and the American Pain Society. Annals of internal medicine. 2007 Oct 2;147(7):478–491. - PubMed
    1. National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence Headaches: Diagnosis and management of headaches in young people and adults. 2012 http://www.nice.org.uk/nicemedia/live/13901/60853/60853.pdf.

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