Acupuncture in patients with tension-type headache: randomised controlled trial.

ABSTRACT:

Objective

To investigate the effectiveness of acupuncture compared with minimal acupuncture and with no acupuncture in patients with tension-type headache.

Design

Three armed randomised controlled multicentre trial.

Setting

28 outpatient centres in Germany.

Participants

270 patients (74% women, mean age 43 (SD 13) years) with episodic or chronic tension-type headache.

Interventions

Acupuncture, minimal acupuncture (superficial needling at non-acupuncture points), or waiting list control. Acupuncture and minimal acupuncture were administered by specialised physicians and consisted of 12 sessions per patient over eight weeks.

Main outcome measure

Difference in numbers of days with headache between the four weeks before randomisation and weeks 9-12 a

SUBMITTER: Melchart D 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC1184247 | biostudies-literature | 2005 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature