Asthma
Conditions
Keywords
Asthma, Acupuncture, Pulmonary function, Quality of life
Brief summary
What is the trend of changes in asthmatic patients' daily peak expiratory flow (PEF) variability, pulmonary function, and quality of life (QOL) with acupuncture treatment on specific acupoints (CV22 and bilateral LU5, ST40, BL13, EXB1) compared with minimal acupuncture treatment (sham control group) on non-acupoints, and no acupuncture treatment (waiting list control group)?
Interventions
DEVICEDisposable stainless steel acupuncture (0.2mmx4mm)
For active acupuncture group, needles were inserted into nine acupoints (CV22 and bilateral LU5, ST40, BL13, EXB1)with De-qi three times a week for 4 weeks. For sham acupuncture group, Nine non-acupoints corresponded with each active acupoint were treated with minimal penetration into skin three times a week for 4 weeks.
Sponsors
Korea Institute of Oriental Medicine
Study design
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Intervention model
PARALLEL
Primary purpose
TREATMENT
Masking
DOUBLE (Subject, Outcomes Assessor)
Eligibility
Sex/Gender
ALL
Age
19 Years to 70 Years
Healthy volunteers
No
Inclusion criteria
* aged 19-70 years * at least 12% improvement in forced expiratory volume in one second (FEV1)after the administration of short acting beta2 agonist. * at least one typical asthmatic symptom * using more than one routine anti-asthmatic medicine
Exclusion criteria
* acupuncture for asthma within 12 months of the study * emergency department visit within one month of the study * hospitalization for asthma within three months of the study * severe upper respiratory tract infections within six weeks of the study * systemic infections, cancers, autoimmune disorders, cardiac failures, myofacial infarcts,angina pectoris, renal failures or hepato-biliary diseases * smoke more than ten cigarettes per day
Design outcomes
Primary
| Measure | Time frame |
|---|---|
| Change of weekly average of peak expiratory flow (PEF)values in the morning at home | From 1 week of run-in period to the 4th week of treatment |
Secondary
| Measure | Time frame |
|---|---|
| Forced expiratory volume in 1 second (FEV1) Baseline Dyspnea Index (BDI) Transition Dyspnea Index (TDI) Quality of Life Questionnaire for Adult Korean Asthmatics (QLQAKA) | Baseline and 2 weeks, 4 weeks, 6 weeks after Baseline (BDI for baseline only, TDI for 2, 4, and 6 weeks after baseline) |
Countries
South Korea
Outcome results
None listed