Acupuncture May Ease Knee Arthritis Pain: Report
Reuters
Tuesday, May 8, 2001
NEW YORK, May 08 (Reuters Health) - As the chronic pain of arthritis causes more and more people to try the ancient Chinese therapy of acupuncture, there is growing evidence that these patients may be onto something,
according to a new report.Acupuncture has become one of the most popular forms of alternative medicine in the US, and chronic pain is the major reason Americans seek the needle therapy. And while acupuncture has broken into mainstream Western medicine, its effectiveness against a range of conditions, including arthritis, is still unclear.
Now, in a review of seven trials of acupuncture for knee osteoarthritis, researchers conclude that the therapy may indeed have a role in easing patients' pain. A team led by Dr. Jeanette Ezzo of Project LEAD in Washington, DC, reports the findings in the April issue of Arthritis and Rheumatism. Osteoarthritis is the most common type of arthritis and a common problem in the elderly.
Ezzo and her colleagues looked at seven studies including nearly 400 patients with knee arthritis, one of the most common sites for the joint disorder. Although the investigators deemed only three trials to be of "high quality," they found that those studies' results were strong enough to suggest acupuncture provides at least short-term relief from knee pain. The three studies compared "sham" acupuncture to "real" acupuncture. Two of the studies compared acupuncture with physical therapy and showed no advantage of one over the other.
Acupuncture was first practiced in China more than 2,000 years ago. According to traditional theory, the human body has thousands of acupuncture points along pathways called meridians, and these pathways conduct energy throughout the body. Acupuncture is believed to keep this energy flow moving smoothly.
Alternatively, some Western scientists speculate that the needle therapy helps release certain pain-killing chemicals from the central nervous system.
According to the Arthritis Foundation in Atlanta, there is enough evidence to suggest acupuncture relieves pain for some arthritis sufferers. It has proven least effective against immune system-related arthritic conditions such as rheumatoid arthritis.
The foundation advises consumers to get an arthritis diagnosis from a medical doctor before seeking acupuncture help. Patients on arthritis medication should not stop the drugs without consulting their doctors.
SOURCE: Arthritis and Rheumatism 2001;44:819-825.
