Table 1.
Demographics and current medications of patients with RA
| Electro-Acupuncture (EA) (N = 12) | Traditional Acupuncture (TCA) (N = 12) | Sham Acupuncture (Sham) (N = 12) | |
| Age, mean ± SD years | 56.4 ± 8.5 | 58.1 ± 12.0 | 57.6 ± 8.3 |
| Disease duration, mean ± SD years | 8.4 ± 5.6 | 10.8 ± 6.2 | 8.1 ± 6.9 |
| Male: Female | 1:11. | 2:10 | 4:8 |
| Rheumatoid factor positive, n (%) | 7 (54) | 11 (85) | 8 (61) |
| Erosion on x-rays (%) | 8 (61) | 8 (61) | 9 (69) |
| Current Medications: | |||
| NSAIDs, n (%) | 7 (54) | 6 (46) | 8 (61) |
| Methotrexate, n (%) | 10 (77) | 8 (61) | 9 (69) |
| Hydroxycloroquine, n (%) | 2 (15) | 1 (7.9) | 0 (0) |
| Sulphasalazine, n (%) | 2 (15) | 4 (31) | 2 (15) |
| Leflunomide, n (%) | 3 (23) | 3 (23) | 4 (31) |
| Prednisolone, n (%) | 2 (15) | 1(7.9) | 1 (8) |
| Analgesics, n (%) | 4 (31) | 0 (0) | 4 (31) |
NSAID = non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs. P > 0.05 comparing all 3 groups in all the variables.