Journal of acupuncture and meridian studies
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J Acupunct Meridian Stud · Mar 2011
Randomized Controlled Trial Comparative StudyA clinical pilot study comparing traditional acupuncture to combined acupuncture for treating headache, trigeminal neuralgia and retro-auricular pain in facial palsy.
Traditional acupuncture (TA) and ear acupuncture (EA) are used for treatment of headache, trigeminal neuralgia, and retro-auricular pain. The purpose of this study is to develop effective treatment using combined acupuncture (CA) which consists of TA and EA and to set clinical protocols for future trials. Participants were divided into TA (n = 15) control and CA (n = 34) experimental groups. ⋯ EA could be selected from Nogier, Fossion and so forth. In conclusion, acupuncture treatment, whether TA or CA, showed pain alleviation in headache, trigeminal neuralgia, and retro-auricular pain, but no significant difference was seen between groups. Prospective, well-controlled, and relevant protocols using multimodal strategies to define the role of TA, EA, and CA are needed.