Acupuncture is best way to treat back pain
By Jeremy Laurance, Health Editor
Published: 25 September 2007
Independent. UK
The ancient Chinese practice of acupuncture works better than anything modern medicine has devised for the treatment of back pain, scientists have concluded.
In trials among 1,100 patients with chronic lower back pain which had lasted for an average of eight years, almost half (47 per cent) of those who received acupuncture showed significant improvement – compared with barely a quarter (27 per cent) of those given conventional treatment. The effects lasted for at least six months, long after the treatment was completed.
The study was conducted by researchers from the University of Regensberg, in the spa town of Bad Abbach in Germany.
The findings add to evidence accumulated over the past 10 years suggesting that the 4,000-year-old practice of acupuncture is an effective treatment for back pain, which affects up to 70-85 per cent of the population at some point.
It will be seen as a victory for exponents of alternative medicine in their battle with orthodox medicine, although many physiotherapists trained in conventional techniques now also practise acupuncture.
http://news.independent.co.uk/health/article2996103.ece
By Jeremy Laurance, Health Editor
Published: 25 September 2007
Independent. UK
The ancient Chinese practice of acupuncture works better than anything modern medicine has devised for the treatment of back pain, scientists have concluded.
In trials among 1,100 patients with chronic lower back pain which had lasted for an average of eight years, almost half (47 per cent) of those who received acupuncture showed significant improvement – compared with barely a quarter (27 per cent) of those given conventional treatment. The effects lasted for at least six months, long after the treatment was completed.
The study was conducted by researchers from the University of Regensberg, in the spa town of Bad Abbach in Germany.
The findings add to evidence accumulated over the past 10 years suggesting that the 4,000-year-old practice of acupuncture is an effective treatment for back pain, which affects up to 70-85 per cent of the population at some point.
It will be seen as a victory for exponents of alternative medicine in their battle with orthodox medicine, although many physiotherapists trained in conventional techniques now also practise acupuncture.
http://news.independent.co.uk/health/article2996103.ece