Controlled trial of acupuncture for disabling breathlessness

In a randomised controlled trial, twelve matched pairs of patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease received traditional Chinese acupuncture or placebo acupuncture. After three weeks' treatment the traditional-acupuncture group showed significantly greater benefit in terms of subjecti...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inThe Lancet (British edition) Vol. 2; no. 8521-22; p. 1416
Main Authors Jobst, K, Chen, J H, McPherson, K, Arrowsmith, J, Brown, V, Efthimiou, J, Fletcher, H J, Maciocia, G, Mole, P, Shifrin, K
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published England 27.12.1986
Subjects
Acupuncture Therapy
Aged
Clinical Trials as Topic
Humans
Lung Diseases, Obstructive - physiopathology
Lung Diseases, Obstructive - therapy
Middle Aged
Physical Exertion
Pilot Projects
Random Allocation
Respiration
Respiratory Function Tests
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Summary:In a randomised controlled trial, twelve matched pairs of patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease received traditional Chinese acupuncture or placebo acupuncture. After three weeks' treatment the traditional-acupuncture group showed significantly greater benefit in terms of subjective scores of breathlessness and six-minute walking distance. Objective measures of lung function were unchanged in either group. Whether these differences are mediated by endogenous opiate and/or peptide release remains speculative.
ISSN:0140-6736
DOI:10.1016/S0140-6736(86)92732-7