Acupuncture in medicine : journal of the British Medical Acupuncture Society
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Randomized Controlled Trial
Investigation into the effects of using two or four acupuncture needles with bidirectional rotation on experimentally-induced contact heat pain in healthy subjects.
There is growing evidence from experimental studies that the acupuncture dose or technique influences the speed of onset of hypoalgesia. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of acupuncture using two or four needles on experimental contact thermal pain in healthy volunteers. ⋯ There is tentative evidence that four needles may be superior to two needles in generating rapid onset hypoalgesia. The findings suggest that further investigation is warranted.