Acupuncture Is Associated with Less Chronic Pain Outcomes Compared with No Acupuncture

Acupuncture is used widely for chronic pain, despite contradictory studies on its results and uncertainty about its mechanism of action. In an evidence synopsis of a previous meta-analysis that included 29 trials conducted in the U.S. and Europe (NEJM JW Gen Med Nov 29 2012), researchers used patient-specific data to compare acupuncture with no acupuncture or sham acupuncture in about 18,000 patients (age range, 39–63; 68% women) with chronic pain (chronic nonspecific musculoskeletal pain, osteoarthritis, chronic headache, or shoulder pain).

The investigators defined a good response as ≥50% reduction in pain. Using the data from the previous studies, they modeled a hypothetical clinical trial and calculated the following response rates: 50% …