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. 2015:2015:735690.
doi: 10.1155/2015/735690. Epub 2015 Aug 4.

Efficacy of Acupuncture versus Combined Oral Contraceptive Pill in Treatment of Moderate-to-Severe Dysmenorrhea: A Randomized Controlled Trial

Intira Sriprasert  1 , Suparerk Suerungruang  2 , Porntip Athilarp  3 , Anuchart Matanasarawoot  4 , Supanimit Teekachunhatean  5
Affiliations

Efficacy of Acupuncture versus Combined Oral Contraceptive Pill in Treatment of Moderate-to-Severe Dysmenorrhea: A Randomized Controlled Trial

Intira Sriprasert et al. Evid Based Complement Alternat Med. 2015.

Abstract

This open-label randomized controlled trial was designed to compare the efficacy of acupuncture and combined oral contraceptive (COC) pill in treating moderate-to-severe primary dysmenorrhea. Fifty-two participants were randomly assigned to receive either acupuncture (n = 27) or COC (n = 25) for three menstrual cycles. Mefenamic acid was prescribed as a recue analgesic drug with both groups. The statistical approach used for efficacy and safety assessments was intention-to-treat analysis. By the end of the study, both treatments had resulted in significant improvement over baselines in all outcomes, that is, maximal dysmenorrhea pain scores, days suffering from dysmenorrhea, amount of rescue analgesic used, and quality of life assessed by SF-36 questionnaire. Over the three treatment cycles, COC caused greater reduction in maximal pain scores than acupuncture, while improvements in the remaining outcomes were comparable. Responders were defined as participants whose maximal dysmenorrhea pain scores decreased at least 33% below their baseline. Response rates following both interventions at the end of the study were not statistically different. Acupuncture commonly caused minimal local side effects but did not cause any hormone-related side effects as did COC. In conclusion, acupuncture is an alternative option for relieving dysmenorrhea, especially when COC is not a favorable choice.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Acupuncture points used in this study.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Study participation flow chart.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Measured variables in the acupuncture (ACU) group and the combined oral contraceptive (COC) pill group. (a) Mean maximal dysmenorrhea pain. (b) Mean number of days per cycle suffering from dysmenorrhea. (c) Mean amount of rescue analgesic used for relief of dysmenorrhea. (d) Percentage of responders. ∗ P < 0.05 compared with the respective baseline values (one-way ANOVA with repeated measurement). † P < 0.05 compared with ACU group at the respective time point (chi-square test).
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