The New England journal of medicine
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Randomized Controlled Trial Clinical Trial
Efficacy of acupuncture on osteoarthritic pain. A controlled, double-blind study.
Forty patients, randomly assigned to an experimental and a control group, participated in a double-blind study to assess the effectiveness of acupuncture in reducing chronic pain associated with osteoarthritis. The experimental group received treatment at standard acupuncture points, and the control group at placebo points. ⋯ Thus, both experimental and control groups showed a reduction in pain after the treatments. These results may reflect the natural course of illness, and various attitudinal and social factors.