Best estimate of what happens to people with osteoarthritis who have acupuncture:
Pain after 8 weeks:
-People who had acupuncture rated their pain to be improved by about 4 points on a scale of 0 to 20.
-People who received sham acupuncture rated their pain to be improved by about 3 points on a scale of 0 to 20.
-People who received acupuncture had a 1 point greater improvement on a scale of 0-20. (5% absolute improvement).
Pain after 26 weeks:
-People who had acupuncture rated their pain to be improved by slightly more than 3 points on a scale of 0 to 20.
-People who received sham acupuncture rated their pain to be improved by slightly less than 3 points on a scale of 0 to 20.
-People who received acupuncture had under a 1 point greater improvement on a scale of 0-20. (2% absolute improvement).
Physical function after 8 weeks :
-People who had acupuncture rated their function to be improved by about 11 points on a scale of 0 to 68.
-People who received sham acupuncture rated their function to be improved by about 8 points on a scale of 0 to 68.
-People who received acupuncture had about a 3 point greater improvement on a scale of 0-68. (4% absolute improvement)
Physical function after 26 weeks :
-People who had acupuncture rated their function to be improved by about 11 points on a scale of 0 to 68.
-People who received sham acupuncture rated their function to be improved by about 10 points on a scale of 0 to 68.
-People who received acupuncture had about a 1 point greater improvement on a scale of 0-68. (2% absolute improvement)