A Treatment Trial of Acupuncture in IBS Patients

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Abstract
Ments) after a 3-week “run-in” with sham acupuncture in an “augmented” or “limited” patient-practitioner interaction. A third arm of the study included a waitlist control group. The primary outcome was the IBS Global Improvement Scale (IBS-GIS) (range: 1-7); secondary outcomes included the IBS Symptom Severity Scale (IBS-SSS), the IBS Adequate Relief (IBS-AR), and the IBS Quality of Life (IBS-QOL). RESULTS: Although there was no statistically significant difference between acupuncture and sham acupuncture on the IBS-GIS (41 vs. 32%,P=0.25), both groups improved significantly compared with the waitlist control group (37 vs. 4%,P=0.001). Similarly, small differences that were not statistically significant favored acupuncture over the other three outcomes: IBS-AR (59 vs. 57%,P=0.83), IBS-SSS (31 vs. 21%,P=0.18), and IBS-QOL (17 vs. 13%,P=0.56). Eliminating responders during the run-in period did not substantively change the results. Side effects were generally mild and only slightly greater in the acupuncture group. CONCLUSIONS: This study did not find evidence to support the superiority of acupuncture compared with sham acupuncture in the treatment of IBS....