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Brinkhaus, B.* ; Ortiz, M.* ; Witt, C.M.* ; Roll, S.* ; Linde, K.* ; Pfab, F. ; Niggemann, B.* ; Hummelsberger, J.* ; Treszl, A.* ; Ring, J.* ; Zuberbier, T.* ; Wegscheider, K.* ; Willich, S.N.*

Acupuncture in patients with seasonal allergic rhinitis: A randomized trial.

Ann. Intern. Med. 158, 225-234 (2013)
DOI PMC
Open Access Green as soon as Postprint is submitted to ZB.
Background: Acupuncture is frequently used to treat seasonal allergic rhinitis (SAR) despite limited scientific evidence. Objective: To evaluate the effects of acupuncture in patients with SAR. Design: Randomized, controlled multicenter trial. (ClinicalTrials.gov:NCT00610584) Setting: 46 specialized physicians in 6 hospital clinics and 32 private outpatient clinics. Patients: 422 persons with SAR and IgE sensitization to birch and grass pollen. Intervention: Acupuncture plus rescue medication (RM) (cetirizine) (n = 212), sham acupuncture plus RM (n = 102), or RM alone (n = 108). Twelve treatments were provided over 8 weeks in the first year. Measurements: Changes in the Rhinitis Quality of Life Questionnaire (RQLQ) overall score and the RM score (RMS) from baseline to weeks 7 and 8 and week 16 in the first year and week 8 in the second year after randomization, with predefined noninferiority margins of -0.5 point (RQLQ) and -1.5 points (RMS). Results: Compared with sham acupuncture and with RM, acupuncture was associated with improvement in RQLQ score (sham vs. acupuncture mean difference, 0.5 point [97.5% CI, 0.2 to 0.8 point; P < 0.001]; RM vs. acupuncture mean difference, 0.7 point [97.5% CI, 0.4 to 1.0 point; P < 0.001]) and RMS (sham vs. acupuncture mean difference, 1.1 points [97.5% CI, 0.4 to 1.9 points; P < 0.001]; RM vs. acupuncture mean difference, 1.5 points [97.5% CI, 0.8 to 2.2 points; P < 0.001]). There were no differences after 16 weeks in the first year. After the 8-week follow-up phase in the second year, small improvements favoring real acupuncture over the sham procedure were noted (RQLQ mean difference, 0.3 point [95% CI, 0.03 to 0.6 point; P = 0.032]; RMS mean difference, 1.0 point [95% CI, 0.2 to 1.9 points; P = 0.018]). Limitation: The study was not powered to detect rare adverse events, and the RQLQ and RMS values were low at baseline. Conclusion: Acupuncture led to statistically significant improvements in disease-specific quality of life and antihistamine use measures after 8 weeks of treatment compared with sham acupuncture and with RM alone, but the improvements may not be clinically significant.
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Publication type Article: Journal article
Document type Scientific Article
Corresponding Author
Keywords Controlled Clinical-trial ; Experimentally Induced Itch ; I Hypersensitivity Itch ; Quality-of-life ; Crossover Trial ; Atopic Eczema ; Alternative Medicine ; Rhinoconjunctivitis ; Complementary ; Questionnaire
ISSN (print) / ISBN 0003-4819
e-ISSN 1539-3704
Journal Annals of Internal Medicine
Quellenangaben Volume: 158, Issue: 4, Pages: 225-234 Article Number: , Supplement: ,
Publisher American College of Physicians
Non-patent literature Publications
Reviewing status Peer reviewed
Institute(s) Institute for Allergy Research (IAF)