Altern Med Rev
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Randomized Controlled Trial
A randomized controlled trial of a multifaceted integrated complementary-alternative therapy for chronic herpes zoster-related pain.
Our objective was to determine whether a three-week complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) approach integrating several therapies from Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) along with neural therapy (injection of 1% procaine as local anesthesia) reduces the level of unresolved pain associated with herpes zoster. ⋯ The described CAM protocol was associated with significantly reduced sub-acute and chronic post-herpes zoster neuralgia pain within three weeks of initiating treatment. Improvements persisted for up to two years.