Back pain:Research update

Back pain is one of the most expensive and exhausting ailments of our

time. It’s the 6th most costly condition in the United States, costing

Americans at least 50 billion in health care costs each year (let alone

the cost of missed work due to disability).1 It is the third most common

reason for a visit to the doctors office (behind skin disorders and osteo-

arthritis joint issues).2 For Acupuncturists, it is the #1 reason people show

up at their door.3

So does it really work? For those that turn to acupuncture, they can rest

assured they are increasing their odds of finding relief. Acupuncture has

been found to be effective for chronic pain, including low back pain. Not

only is acupuncture more clinically effective than no treatment at short-

term follow-ups that looked at measures of pain relief and functional

improvement4 acupuncture was actually found to be substantially better

than standard care in a meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials that

included around 20,000 patients with chronic musculoskeletal pain.5

Acupuncture is also safe. In a cumulative review of more than 1 million

acupuncture treatments, the risk of a serious adverse event with

acupuncture was estimated to be 0.05 per 10,000 treatments and 0.55

per 10,000 individual patients. Most common side effects were minor,

and included bleeding at the needle site and localized needling pain.6

So how does sticking needles in the various points in the body actually

help to alleviate back pain? The explanation according to Acupuncture

theory involves the movement of stuck energy (qi) and blood in the

body. Points along various energy channels are used to open pathways

and redirect ‘traffic’ to promote a healthy flow of qi and blood. Western

biomedical research looks at acupuncture effects on the nervous,

immune and endocrine systems. It has been shown that the stimulation

with acupuncture needles produces an analgesic effect through the

release of endorphins , dopamine, endogenous cannabinoids (some of

the body’s natural pain-killers) and anti-inflammatory substances as well

as the inhibition of pro-inflammatory factors.7

And does it last? The beneficial effects of acupuncture do, in fact.

persist beyond the course of treatment. In a meta-analysis of around

18,000 patients with chronic pain, 90% of the pain-relieving effects were

maintained at 1 year out.8

As far as cost-effectiveness, acupuncture scores again. In one study

in Canada, low back pain patients divided into 2 groups (201 patients

receiving acupuncture and 804 patients not receiving acupuncture) were

evaluated for the number of medical doctor visits required for treatment

of their low back pain. The acupuncture patients saw their doctors 49%

less after having acupuncture compared with the year prior to having

acupuncture. Non-acupuncture patients had a decrease of only 2%.9

The WHO officially classifies acupuncture as a cost-effective treatment

strategy in patients with chronic low back pain, according to their cost-

effectiveness threshold values.10

Back pain, as many of us have experienced, can be an expensive

threat to our quality of life. Depending on the cause and severity of the

back pain, acupuncture can be a safe and cost-effective alternative or

complementary approach to treatment, providing much needed relief!