Acupuncture fails to improve treatment outcome in alcoholics
Item
Title
Acupuncture fails to improve treatment outcome in alcoholics
Author(s)
Date
1992
volume
30(2)
pages
169-173
Research Type
RCT
Keywords
Abstract
Fifty-six alcoholics (49 male, 7 female) of lower socioeconomic class attending an outpatient treatment program in Brooklyn, New York were prospectively randomized to one of three treatment group: point-specific acupuncture, sham transdermal stimulation or standard care (control). One third of the subjects reported a history of drug use in addition to alcohol. Results in this small sample showed no significant differences in attendance at Alcoholics Anonymous meetings, number of outpatients sessions attended, number of weeks in either the study or in the outpatient program, number of persons completing treatment or in the number of relapses. It is therefore concluded that in this small racially mixed sample of urban outpatient alcoholics, fixed point-specific standardized acupuncture did not improve outcome. We caution against the routine use of this treatment until more randomized controlled trials demonstrate a beneficial effect
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has health condition studied
Substance-Related Disorders
plan
>1/WK
has study population number
56
has duration
12 Weeks