Focus on Alternative and Complementary Therapies
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Focus Alternat Complement Ther©2005 Pharmaceutical Press
Focus Altern Complement Ther 2006; 11: 42
The aim of the study was to investigate if acupuncture treatment decreases pain level during menstruation or ovulation in patients with endometriosis. Additional parameters such as reduction of pain medication and improvement of quality of life have been recorded.
A total of 101 females aged between 20 and 40 years with laprascopic-proofed endometriosis were randomised in two groups. One group got specific acupuncture (ap) according to the rules of traditional Chinese medicine and the other group got non-specific acupuncture, which means acupuncture points with no relation to the diagnosis. All of them were appropriated for the study with a minimum pain score of 5 according to the VAS. Each group received a 10-week treatment twice a week. After a 2-month interval observation period the two groups changed according to the crossover design. Before, during and after treatment a questionnaire was used to examine the pain level and the quality of life (VAS, SF-36, PDI).
Eighty-three of 101 participants have regularly finished both treatment groups. The result shows a highly significant decrease of pain level in the specific group in comparison to the non-specific group where the pain level was nearly equal to the basic value. SF-36 and PDI show highly significant improvement in physical and psychological health.
The result suggests that patients with endometriosis and conventional medicine still suffering from a high pain level gain benefit from specific acupuncture treatment.
Due to the effective and supportive cooperation of all assistants of ‘Johannes Bischko Institut of Acupuncture’ (former Ludwig Boltzmann Institut) we were able to perform this kind of investigation.
