Anesth Analg. 1976 Mar-Apr; 55(2): 229-31.

Incidence of prolonged pain relief following acupuncture.

Lee PK, Modell JH, Andersen TW, Saga SA.

From March 1973 to Decenber 1974, 2090 electroacupuncture treatments were applied to 533 patients with chronic pain. Of 533 patients, 276 (52%) reported excellent (greater than 75%) pain relief immediately after the last treatment, and 103 (19.3%) still reported excellent pain relief on a 4-week followup questionnaire. In March 1975, the authors contacted 87 of these 103 patients. Sixty-three reported that they still had excellent pain relief 3 to 18 months after therapy, 3 patients reported that their pain still was relieved 50%, and 21 patients said their pain had returned to the same intensity as before therapy. Thus, 12% of 533 patients who received acupuncture treatment for chronic pain had a significant degree of pain relief at least 3 months after therapy.