MacPherson, H, Tilbrook, H, Agbedjro, D et al. (3 more authors) (2017) Acupuncture for Irritable Bowel Syndrome: 2-Year Follow-Up of a Randomised Controlled Trial. Acupuncture in Medicine, 35 (1). pp. 17-23. ISSN 0964-5284
Abstract
Background
A recent randomised controlled trial (RCT) of acupuncture as a treatment for irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) demonstrated sustained benefits over a period of 12 months post-randomisation.
Aim
To extend the trial follow-up to evaluate the effects of acupuncture at 24 months post-randomisation.
Methods
Patients in primary care with ongoing IBS were recruited to a two-arm pragmatic RCT of acupuncture for IBS. Participants were randomised to the offer of up to 10 weekly sessions of acupuncture plus usual care (n=116 patients) or to continue with usual care alone (n=117). The primary outcome was the self-reported IBS symptom severity score (IBS SSS) measured at 24 months post-randomisation. Analysis was by intention-to-treat using an unstructured multivariate linear model incorporating all repeated measures.
Results
The overall response rate was 61%. The adjusted difference in mean IBS SSS at 24 months was −18.28 (95% CI −40.95 to 4.40) in favour of the acupuncture arm. Differences at earlier time points estimated from the multivariate model were: −27.27 (−47.69 to −6.86) at 3 months; −23.69 (−45.17 to −2.21) at 6 months; −24.09 (−45.59 to −2.59) at 9 months; and −23.06 (−44.52 to −1.59) at 12 months.
Conclusions
There were no statistically significant differences between the acupuncture and usual care groups in IBS SSS at 24 months post-randomisation, and the point estimate for the mean difference was approximately 80% of the size of the statistically significant results seen at 6, 9 and 12 months.
Trial registration number
ISRCTN08827905.
Metadata
Item Type: | Article |
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Authors/Creators: |
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Copyright, Publisher and Additional Information: | This is an Open Access article distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work noncommercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/bync/4.0/ |
Keywords: | ACUPUNCTURE; PRIMARY CARE; GASTROENTEROLOGY |
Dates: |
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Institution: | The University of Leeds |
Academic Units: | The University of Leeds > Faculty of Medicine and Health (Leeds) > School of Medicine (Leeds) > Leeds Institute of Cardiovascular and Metabolic Medicine (LICAMM) > Clinical & Population Science Dept (Leeds) |
Depositing User: | Symplectic Publications |
Date Deposited: | 10 May 2019 12:52 |
Last Modified: | 10 May 2019 12:52 |
Status: | Published |
Publisher: | SAGE |
Identification Number: | 10.1136/acupmed-2015-010854 |
Related URLs: | |
Open Archives Initiative ID (OAI ID): | oai:eprints.whiterose.ac.uk:145825 |
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Filename: Acupuncture for irritable bowel syndrome: 2-year follow-up of a randomised controlled trial.pdf
Licence: CC-BY-NC 4.0