Ann Intern Med

How effective is acupuncture for treating chronic spontaneous urticaria?

December 11, 2023

Acupuncture produced a greater improvement in chronic spontenous urticaria (CSU) symptoms, but the difference compared with controls was not clinically significant in this randomized trial conducted at three hospitals in China from May 2019 through July 2022.

• 330 participants diagnosed with CSU were randomly assigned in a 1:1:1 ratio to receive acupuncture, sham acupuncture, or waitlist control over an 8-week study period (4 weeks for treatment and another 4 weeks for follow-up).
• Primary outcome was the mean change from baseline in the Weekly Urticaria Activity Score (UAS7) at week 4. Secondary outcomes included itch severity scores, self-rated improvement, and Dermatology Life Quality Index scores.
• The mean change in UAS7 (range, 0 to 42) for acupuncture from baseline (mean score, 23.5 [95% CI, 21.8 to 25.2]) to week 4 (mean score, 15.3 [CI, 13.6 to 16.9]) was -8.2 (CI, -9.9 to -6.6).
• The mean change in UAS7 for sham acupuncture from baseline (mean score, 21.9 [CI, 20.2 to 23.6]) to week 4 (mean score, 17.8 [CI, 16.1 to 19.5]) was -4.1 (CI, -5.8 to -2.4).
• The mean change in UAS7 for waitlist control from baseline (mean score, 22.1 [CI, 20.4 to 23.8]) to week 4 (mean score, 20.0 [CI, 18.3 to 21.6]) was -2.2 (CI, -3.8 to -0.5).
• The mean differences between acupuncture and sham acupuncture and waitlist control were -4.1 (CI, -6.5 to -1.8) and -6.1 (CI, -8.4 to -3.7), respectively, which did not meet the threshold for minimal clinically important difference.
• Fifteen participants (13.6%) in the acupuncture group and none in the other groups reported adverse events that were mild or transient.

Source:

Zheng H, et al. (2023, November 14). Ann Intern Med. Efficacy of Acupuncture for Chronic Spontaneous Urticaria: A Randomized Controlled Trial. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37956431/