Longer term clinical and economic benefits of offering acupuncture to patients with chronic low back pain

Status

Active, not recruiting

Phases

Unknown

Study type

Interventional

Source

ISRCTN

Registry ID

ISRCTN80764175

Enrollment

200

Registered

2003-04-25

Start date

1999-04-12

Completion date

Unknown

Last updated

2015-01-13

For informational purposes only — not medical advice. Sourced from public registries and may not reflect the latest updates. Terms

Conditions

Chronic low back pain Musculoskeletal Diseases Spinal conditions

Interventions

1. Traditional Chinese acupuncture, up to 10 treatments 2. Standard care offered by GP only

Eligibility

Sex/Gender

All

Inclusion criteria

Inclusion criteria: Patients with low back pain. Age 20-65 years with low back pain or sciatica, greater than 4 weeks and less than 12-months pain this episode

Exclusion criteria

Exclusion criteria: Past spinal surgery, severe or progressive motor weakness or central disc prolapse, possible spinal pathology (eg carcinoma)

Design outcomes

Primary

Measure	Time frame
1. Relief of chronic pain 2. Cost effectiveness	—

Secondary

Measure	Time frame
Secondary outcomes included the McGill Present Pain Index (PPI), Oswestry Pain Disability Index (ODI), all other SF-36 dimensions, medication use, pain-free months in the past year, worry about back pain, satisfaction with care received, and safety and acceptability of acupuncture care.	—

Countries

United Kingdom

Outcome results

None listed

Source: ISRCTN (via WHO ICTRP) · Data processed: Apr 11, 2026