Acupuncture in medicine : journal of the British Medical Acupuncture Society
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Randomized Controlled Trial
A placebo acupuncture needle with potential for double blinding - a validation study.
The double blind, non-penetrating placebo needle is effective in masking patients who are not informed that they may receive a placebo needle. In this study, we aimed to examine whether such needles are effective in masking subjects who have been so informed. ⋯ The non-penetrating placebo needle was effective in masking fully informed subjects. When used together with the matched penetrating needle, it has potential for use in double blind (patient and practitioner blind) studies.