Table 3. Resource utilisation over 12 month follow-up by treatment group.
| Acupuncture | Alexander lessons | Usual care | |
|---|---|---|---|
| (n = 104) Mean (SD) | (n = 89) Mean (SD) | (n = 100) Mean (SD) | |
| NHS Healthcare resource use | |||
| NHS appointmentsa | |||
| General Practitioner appointments | 3.25 (2.94) | 4.01 (3.94) | 3.59 (3.43) |
| Practice Nurse appointments | 1.22 (1.47) | 1.44 (2.50) | 1.06 (1.38) |
| Physiotherapist visits | 1.01 (2.56) | 1.43 (2.96) | 1.12 (2.53) |
| Hospital outpatient visits | 0.85 (1.94) | 0.93 (1.75) | 0.77 (1.81) |
| Accident and Emergency admissions | 0.23 (0.69) | 0.09 (0.44) | 0.09 (0.35) |
| Hospital day case admissions | 0.13 (0.40) | 0.18 (0.65) | 0.09 (0.32) |
| Other hospital admissions | 0.05 (0.26) | 0.02 (0.21) | 0.03 (0.17) |
| Prescription medicationb | |||
| Prescription items (all) | 11.42 (18.74) | 15.60 (22.17) | 11.64 (17.92) |
| Prescription items for neck pain | 1.84 (5.60) | 2.70 (5.53) | 3.83 (9.15) |
| Private healthcare for neck painc | |||
| Additional acupuncture sessions | 1.51 (3.91)** | 0.20 (1.21) | 0.14 (1.07) |
| Additional Alexander Technique lessons | 0 | 0.54 (2.01)* | 0 |
| Other private appointments for neck paind | 0.86 (3.06) | 0.98 (3.40) | 2.11 (6.44) |
| Productivity losses | |||
| Days off work due to neck paine | 0.38 (1.99) | 1.44 (7.51) | 2.27 (11.33) |
| Hours taken to attend sessions (for those in full time work)f | 19.68 (5.43) | 25.91 (9.26) | - |
*p<0.05
**p<0.001 (independent samples t-test comparing means for acupuncture vs. usual care and Alexander vs. usual care). Neck pain prescriptions t-test comparing usual care and acupuncture borderline significance (p = 0.06).
aTotal NHS appointments coded as missing if all questions about NHS appointments were left blank at 6 or 12 months.
bTotal prescriptions coded as missing if the participant answered ‘yes’ to taking prescription medication but all questions about prescription medications were left blank at 6 or 12 months.
cPrivate healthcare coded as missing if responded ‘yes’ to paying for additional treatments, but left information about the number of treatments blank.
dOther private treatment reported included: yoga, massage therapy, physiotherapy, chiropractor and osteopath appointments.
eExcluding time off work to attend intervention sessions.
fN = 42 for acupuncture, N = 33 for Alexander lessons.
SD, Standard deviation