Table 2.
Key data of RCTs of acupuncture in Korean literatures
| First author (Year) (Ref) | Conditions Sample size (randomized/analysed) | Study design Quality score,a Acupuncture validity score [quality of acupunctureb, degree of confidencec], allocation concealmentd | Experimental treatment (Regimen) | Control treatment (Regimen) | Concomitant treatment | Main outcomes | Intergroup difference | Authors conclusion |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sok (2000) (18) | Insomnia 74/74 | 2 parallel arms 1, [1, 15%], unclear | AA (1 time, retain for 4 days, thumbtack-type needle), plus press(1 ∼ 2 min, 3 times daily for 4 days, n=37) | No treatment (n=37) | n.r. | (1) Sleep quality (2) Self-satisfaction (Sleep) | (1) P < 0.001 (2) P < 0.001 | ‘Auricular acupuncture can reduce the frequent insomnia of the elderly and increase the satisfaction they find in sleep.’ |
| Kim (1996) (16) | Post-operative nausea and vomiting 100/100 | 2 parallel arms 1, [4, 95%], unclear | AA (thumbtack-type needle, n=50) | No treatment (n=50) | n.r. | (1) Incidence of vomiting/retching, or nausea | (1) P < 0.01 | ‘Auricular acupuncture is effective in reducing nausea and vomiting after transabdominal hysterectomy in female patients.’ |
| Park (1999) (17) | Temporomandibular disorder 38/38 | 2 parallel arms 1, [4, 90%], unclear | EA (3-15Hz, 20 min, 3 times weekly for 2 weeks, n=28) | No-treatment (n=10) | None | (1) Pain (Numeric analog scale) (2) Maximal mouth opening | (1) P < 0.05 (2) NS | ‘The clinical indexes of the treated patient group are more significantly changed than those of the non-treated patient group.’ |
| Park (2005) (12) | Allergic rhinitis 101/101 | 2 parallel arms (subject and evaluator blinding) 3, [4, 85%], unclear | AT (15 min, one time, n=50) | Placebo AT on non acupuncture point, (15 min, one time, n=51) | None | (1) Total nasal volume (2) Total nasal minimum cross-sectional area | (1) NS at immediate after, after 7.5 min and 15 mine (2) P < 0.05 after 15 mine | ‘Acupuncture reduces nasal obstruction due to persistent allergic rhinitis’ |
| Kim (2005) (9) | Premenstrual syndrome 20/13 | 2 parallel arms (subject and acupuncturist blinding) 4, [3, 75%], unclear | AT (n.r., 2 times weekly for 8weeks, n=n.r.) | Placebo AT on acupuncture point (n.r., 2 times weekly for 8weeks, n=n.r.) | None | (1) Menstrual symptom severity | (1) P < 0.05 | ‘Acupuncture results in significant improvement in physical and psychological symptoms compared to placebo treatment.’ |
| Lee (2006) (11) | Frozen shoulder 86/85 | 3 parallel arms (subject blinding) 2, [4, 90%], unclear | (A) AT (nearby acupuncture point, 30 min, 3 times weekly for 4 weeks, n=28) (B) AT [(A) + remote acupuncture point, 30 min, 3 times weekly for 4 weeks, n=28] | Placebo AT on non acupuncture point, (30 min, 3 times weekly for 4 weeks, n=29) | n.r. | (1) Pain (VAS) (2) Shoulder Pain and Disability Index (3) Patient's Global Assessment (4) ROM | (1)-(3) NS (4) NS, (A) vs. control P < 0.05, external rotation of upper arm: (B) vs. control | ‘Acupuncture at both remote and nearby acupoints may be effective in improving external rotation of frozen shoulder.’ |
| Kwon (2007) (10) | Chronic low back pain 50/50 | 2 parallel arms (subject and evaluator blinding) 5, [3, 75%], unclear | AT (20 min, 3 times weekly for 4 weeks, n=25) | Placebo AT on non acupuncture point, (20 min, 3 times weekly for 4 weeks, n=25) | n.r. | (1) Pain (VAS) (2) Ronald disability index | (1) NS (2) NS | ‘The manual acupuncture is effective for chronic low back pain, compared with the sham acupuncture.’ |
| Choi (2005) (14) | Chronic headache 86/51 | 2 parallel arms 2, [4, 90%], unclear | AT (20 min, 2 times weekly for 4 weeks, n=43) | Stellate ganglion block therapy (2 times weekly for 4 weeks, n=43) | None | (1) Pain (VAS) (2) Pain (Brief Pain Inventory) | (1) NS (2) NS | ‘The four-week acupuncture and stellate ganglion block therapy in chronic headache patients is effective for reducing headache.’ |
| Cho (1997) (13) | Post-thoracotomy pain 20/20 | 2 parallel arms 1, [3, 85%], unclear | AT (20-30 min one time and retain it for 2 day, n=10) | Analgesic treatment group (n=10) | NSAID | (1) Pain (Lickert scales) (2) Limitation of motion (3) Analgesics requirement | (1), (2) NS (3) P < 0.05 | ‘Acupuncture is an effective method by which to control post-thoracotomy pain and it is safer than analgesics.’ |
| Yuk (2005) (15) | Primary dysmenorrhea 22/17 | Cross-over 2, [1, 40%], unclear | AT (20 min, total 2 or 3 times, n=17) | Herbal medicine (3 times daily for 5 days, n=17) | n.r. | (1) Pain (VAS) | (1) NS | ‘The acupuncture or herbal medicine during the 5 or 7 days before menstruation will be efficacious against primary dysmenorrheal’ |
AA: auricular acupuncture; AT: classic acupuncture; EA: electroacupuncutre; n.r.: not reported; NS: not significant; ROM: range of motion; VAS: visual analogue scale.
aQuality score: Jadad score.
bQuality of acupuncture: 0, could not assess; 1, completely differently; 2, differently; 3, similarly; 4, exactly or almost exactly the same way.
cDegree of confidence: degree of confidence that acupuncture was applied appropriate manner100mm visual scale (with 0%=complete absence of evidence that the acupuncture was appropriate, and 100%=total certainty that the acupuncture was appropriate) please see supplement 3 for details.
dClassified by Cochrane criteria: adequate, unclear, inadequate, or not used.
eAuthors did not report the intergroup difference. We have calculated the intergroup difference with their reported values.