A randomised, controlled trial undertaken by researchers in Greece, has shown that acupuncture combined with non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), is significantly more effective for chronic, osteoarthritic knee pain, than either sham acupuncture plus NSAIDs, or NSAIDs alone.
A total of 120 patients were randomly allocated to the three groups, and assessed at four, eight and twelve weeks. The acupuncture plus NSAID group, exhibited statistically significant improvements in all but one primary and secondary outcome measure, compared with the other two treatment groups.
(Acupuncture as an Adjunctive Therapy to Pharmacological Treatment in Patients with Chronic Pain due to Osteoarthritis of the Knee: A 3-Armed, Randomised, Placebo-Controlled Trial. Pain Journal, Elsevier, August 2012.)
Author: Robin Costello
I offer traditional Chinese acupuncture in Exeter, from a tranquil clinic a mile from the city centre, and next to the University of Exeter. I graduated originally from the London School of Acupuncture and Traditional Chinese Medicine’s 3 year full time Acupuncture Diploma (DipAc) course. I am on the practitioners register of the British Acupuncture Council (MBAcC), a regulatory and professional body with an entry standard of a full three year undergraduate degree level training.
I have worked in a hospital in south west China, deepening my knowledge and using acupuncture and Chinese massage (tuina) as the treatment of choice in its country of origin. I have taught Chinese medicine in colleges, the NHS and at university level. I also practise Qi Gong, and Chinese dietary therapy, that is the medicinal use of ordinary foods, chosen to help achieve particular therapeutic effects in different individuals.
View all posts by Robin Costello
