Acupuncture and Knee Osteoarthritis
Authors: Dan C. Cherkin, Karen J. Sherman
Journal: Annals of Internal Medicine (2005)

Letters17 May 2005Acupuncture and Knee OsteoarthritisDan C. Cherkin, PhD and Karen J. Sherman, PhD, MPHDan C. Cherkin, PhDFrom Group Health Center for Health Studies, Seattle, WA 98101.Search for more papers by this author and Karen J. Sherman, PhD, MPHFrom Group Health Center for Health Studies, Seattle, WA 98101.Search for more papers by this authorAuthor, Article, and Disclosure Informationhttps://doi.org/10.7326/0003-4819-142-10-200505170-00019 SectionsAboutFull TextPDF ToolsAdd to favoritesDownload CitationsTrack CitationsPermissions ShareFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditEmail TO THE EDITOR:Berman and colleagues' recent trial evaluating acupuncture for osteoarthritis of the knee (1) is one of the most scientifically rigorous acupuncture trials ever conducted. Noteworthy strengths include a sham acupuncture treatment that closely mimicked real acupuncture, a minimal-intervention control group, large sample sizes, a clinically credible acupuncture treatment, acupuncture-naive participants, short-term and longer-term outcome measures, multiple sites and acupuncturists, balanced allocation of true and sham treatments for each acupuncturist, and high rates of adherence.The study's most obvious limitation is the high rate of loss to follow-up in the education group. If those failing to provide follow-up ...References1. Berman BM, Lao L, Langenberg P, Lee WL, Gilpin AM, Hochberg MC. Effectiveness of acupuncture as adjunctive therapy in osteoarthritis of the knee: a randomized, controlled trial. Ann Intern Med. 2004;141:901-10. [PMID: 15611487] LinkGoogle Scholar2. Lorig K, Gonzalez VM, Laurent DD, Morgan L, Laris BA. Arthritis self-management program variations: three studies. Arthritis Care Res. 1998;11:448-54. [PMID: 10030176] CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar3. Moseley JB, O'Malley K, Petersen NJ, Menke TJ, Brody BA, Kuykendall DH, et al. A controlled trial of arthroscopic surgery for osteoarthritis of the knee. N Engl J Med. 2002;347:81-8. [PMID: 12110735] CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar4. Di Blasi Z, Harkness E, Ernst E, Georgiou A, Kleijnen J. Influence of context effects on health outcomes: a systematic review. Lancet. 2001;357:757-62. [PMID: 11253970] CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar5. Moerman D. Meaning, Medicine and the “Placebo Effect.”. Cambridge: Cambridge Univ Pr; 2002. Google Scholar Author, Article, and Disclosure InformationAuthors: Dan C. Cherkin, PhD; Karen J. Sherman, PhD, MPHAffiliations: From Group Health Center for Health Studies, Seattle, WA 98101.Disclosures: None disclosed. PreviousarticleNextarticle Advertisement FiguresReferencesRelatedDetailsSee AlsoEffectiveness of Acupuncture as Adjunctive Therapy in Osteoarthritis of the Knee Brian M. Berman , Lixing Lao , Patricia Langenberg , Wen Lin Lee , Adele M.K. Gilpin , and Marc C. Hochberg Acupuncture and Knee Osteoarthritis Brian Berman , Adele M.K. Gilpin , and Lixing Lao Acupuncture and Knee Osteoarthritis Richard H. Baker Metrics Cited byManipulative Therapy for Lower Extremity Conditions: Expansion of Literature Review 17 May 2005Volume 142, Issue 10Page: 872KeywordsAcupunctureArthroscopyConflicts of interestEvidence based medicineKneesOsteoarthritisTraditional Chinese medicine ePublished: 17 May 2005 Issue Published: 17 May 2005 Copyright & PermissionsCopyright © 2005 by American College of Physicians. All Rights Reserved.PDF downloadLoading ...