A multicentre, randomised controlled trial in Spain, has found that acupuncture in association with physiotherapy, is more beneficial for shoulder pain and function, than physiotherapy on its own. A total of 425 patients received fifteen sessions of physiotherapy over a three week period; additionally, some were randomised to receive either acupuncture, or mock TENS as a control.
Using a shoulder outcome scoring system, the acupuncture group improved by 16.6 points, compared with only 10.6 in the control group. Furthermore, 53% of the acupuncture patients had reduced their painkiller consumption, compared with only 30% in the control group.
(Single-Point Acupuncture; Physiotherapy for the Treatment of Painful Shoulder: a Multicentre Randomised Controlled Trial. Rheumatology, 1 June 2008.)
Author: Robin Costello
I offer traditional Chinese acupuncture in Exeter, from a tranquil clinic a mile from the city centre, and next to the University of Exeter. I graduated originally from the London School of Acupuncture and Traditional Chinese Medicine’s 3 year full time Acupuncture Diploma (DipAc) course. I am on the practitioners register of the British Acupuncture Council (MBAcC), a regulatory and professional body with an entry standard of a full three year undergraduate degree level training.
I have worked in a hospital in south west China, deepening my knowledge and using acupuncture and Chinese massage (tuina) as the treatment of choice in its country of origin. I have taught Chinese medicine in colleges, the NHS and at university level. I also practise Qi Gong, and Chinese dietary therapy, that is the medicinal use of ordinary foods, chosen to help achieve particular therapeutic effects in different individuals.
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