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Efficacy of Intensive Acupuncture Versus Sham Acupuncture in Knee Osteoarthritis: A Randomized Controlled Trial
Author(s) -
Tu JianFeng,
Yang JingWen,
Shi GuangXia,
Yu ZhangSheng,
Li JinLing,
Lin LuLu,
Du YuZheng,
Yu XiaoGang,
Hu Hui,
Liu ZhiShun,
Jia ChunSheng,
Wang LiQiong,
Zhao JingJie,
Wang Jun,
Wang Tong,
Wang Yang,
Wang TianQi,
Zhang Na,
Zou Xuan,
Wang Yu,
Shao JiaKai,
Liu CunZhi
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
arthritis and rheumatology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 4.106
H-Index - 314
eISSN - 2326-5205
pISSN - 2326-5191
DOI - 10.1002/art.41584
Subject(s) - medicine , acupuncture , osteoarthritis , randomized controlled trial , electroacupuncture , confidence interval , physical therapy , population , anesthesia , alternative medicine , environmental health , pathology
Objective To assess the efficacy of intensive acupuncture (3 times weekly for 8 weeks) versus sham acupuncture for knee osteoarthritis (OA). Methods In this multicenter, randomized, sham‐controlled trial, patients with knee OA were randomly assigned to receive electroacupuncture (EA), manual acupuncture (MA), or sham acupuncture (SA) 3 times weekly for 8 weeks. Participants, outcome assessors, and statisticians were blinded with regard to treatment group assignment. The primary outcome measure was response rate, which is the proportion of participants who simultaneously achieved minimal clinically important improvement in pain and function by week 8. The primary analysis was conducted using a Z test for proportions in the modified intent‐to‐treat population, which included all randomized participants who had ≥1 post‐baseline measurement. Results Of the 480 participants recruited in the trial, 442 were evaluated for efficacy. The response rates at week 8 were 60.3% (91 of 151), 58.6% (85 of 145), and 47.3% (69 of 146) in the EA, MA, and SA groups, respectively. The between‐group differences were 13.0% (97.5% confidence interval [97.5% CI] 0.2%, 25.9%; P = 0.0234) for EA versus SA and 11.3% (97.5% CI −1.6%, 24.4%; P = 0.0507) for MA versus SA. The response rates in the EA and MA groups were both significantly higher than those in the SA group at weeks 16 and 26. Conclusion Among patients with knee OA, intensive EA resulted in less pain and better function at week 8, compared with SA, and these effects persisted though week 26. Intensive MA had no benefit for knee OA at week 8, although it showed benefits during follow‐up.