Focus on Alternative and Complementary Therapies
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Focus Alternat Complement Ther©2005 Pharmaceutical Press
Focus Altern Complement Ther 2004; 9: 38–9
Itch is a major symptom in allergy with some psycho-physiologic similarity to pain. The Eppendorf Itch Questionnaire (EIQ) was developed as an instrument for qualitative and quantitative registration of pruritus. Acupuncture has been shown to be an effective treatment for pain. We investigated the effect of acupuncture on experimental itch in a feasibility study.
Ten healthy volunteers participated in a blinded, randomised, crossover trial with an evaluated 1% histamine stimulus after three experimental conditions: acupuncture at Quchi (A1, dominant arm), ‘placebo’ acupuncture (A2, dominant arm) and no acupuncture (NA). Itch intensity was recorded on a computer-aided visual analogue scale (VAS, 20 s interval). After 10 min, the skin reactions wheal and flare were measured at the stimulus site and the EIQ was presented to the volunteers.
All subjects reported itch without pain 40 s after histamine application. The mean VAS ratings for 10 min were significantly lower in A1 (31 ± 13) compared to A2 (37 ± 17, P < 0.001) and NA (39 ± 19, P < 0.001). The area under the curve for itch intensity was significantly lower in A1 (18600 ± 6900%s) compared to NA (23500 ± 9500%s, P = 0.02) and A2 (22100 ± 9400%s, P = 0.05). The mean emotional item rating was significantly (P < 0.001) lower in A1 (0.52) compared to NA (0.63), whereas the descriptive EIQ rating showed no difference between groups. Corresponding mean flare/wheal sizes were 36.7/5.8 mm (NA), 33.9/4.7 mm (A1) and 37.2/5.2 mm (A2), with a significant difference in mean wheal size between A1 and NA (P = 0.027).
Dependently from the choice of the site of acupuncture, this pre-treatment reduced experimental histamine itch.
