• Zhen Zheng, Stephen Gibson, Robert D Helme, Yanyi Wang, David Shao-Chen Lu, Carolyn Arnold, Malcolm Hogg, Andrew A Somogyi, Cliff Da Costa, and Charlie Chang Li Xue.
• School of Health and Biomedical Sciences, RMIT University, Bundoora, Victoria, Australia.
• Pain Med. 2019 Feb 1; 20 (2): 397-410.

ObjectivesTo evaluate the efficacy and safety of electroacupuncture in reducing opioid consumption in patients with chronic musculoskeletal pain.DesignA randomized, participant-assessor-blinded, three-arm trial.SettingParticipants from three pain clinics and from the public.SubjectsOne hundred and eight adults with chronic pain who were taking opioids.MethodsAll participants received pain and medication management education. Participants were randomly allocated to electroacupuncture (N = 48), sham electroacupuncture (N = 29), or education alone (N = 31) to receive relevant treatment for 12 weeks. The last group received electroacupuncture during the three-month follow-up. Analysis of covariance and paired t tested were used.ResultsOpioid dosage, that is, the primary outcome measure, was reduced by 20.5% (P < 0.05) and 13.7% (P < 0.01) in the two acupuncture groups and by 4.5% in the education group at the end of the treatment phase, but without any group difference. Intensity of pain of all three groups did not change over time. No group differences were found in dosage of nonopioid analgesics, pain intensity, function, and opioid-related adverse events. During follow-up, the education group had a 47% reduction of opioids after a course of electroacupuncture. Adverse events to electroacupuncture were minor.ConclusionIt is safe to reduce opioid medication use in patients with chronic pain. Due to the small sample size, we could not confirm if electroacupuncture offers extra benefit in addition to education. This nondrug therapy could be a promising adjunct to facilitate opioid tapering in patients who are willing to reduce opioids.© 2018 American Academy of Pain Medicine. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

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