Hospital and university researchers in Taiwan have found that acupuncture treatment of high blood pressure in the elderly, alongside usual medication, delivers a host of other benefits. Seventy patients aged 65 and above, with hypertension and impaired mobility, receiving home care, were randomly allocated to have either standard antihypertensive drugs, or acupuncture alongside standard drugs. Acupuncture was given twice a week for 12 consecutive weeks. Patients were taking between one and three antihypertensive drugs.
At the end of the treatment period, the patients receiving the combination therapy had lower physical pain levels, improved physical and mental health, a greater ability to undertake daily living activities, and lower systolic blood pressure. The drug-only group showed no significant changes.
(Assessment of quality of life & activities of daily living among elderly patients with hypertension & impaired physical mobility in home health care by antihypertensive drugs plus acupuncture: A CONSORT-compliant, randomized controlled trial. Medicine (Baltimore), 18 March 2022.)