Health Brief

ACUPUNCTURE TREATMENT OFFERS LONG-TERM RELIEF FOR THOSE WITH CHRONIC NECK AND SHOULDER PAIN

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Researchers followed 24 female office workers who had suffered from chronic neck and shoulder pain to determine whether Acupuncture was an effective treatment and to assess any side effects associated with the treatment.

The 24 women were randomly assigned to a treatment or control group. Those in the treatment group received 10 sessions of Acupuncture treatments during a three to four-week period. Acupuncture was either applied to anti-pain Acu-points or at placebo points.

Prior to the first treatment, a physician measured each of the participants' pain threshold. This was again measured at the last treatment and at a six-month follow-up.

Participants answered questionnaires which focused on muscle pain and headaches during these times and again three years after the last treatment.

Women who received Acupuncture reported less pain than before the treatment and also reported a reduction in frequency and duration.

The study also revealed that the results were long-lasting; the improvements still existed three years after the study.

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SOURCE: Science Direct, www.sciencedirect.com, June 2004.