Acupuncture as a complementary therapy to the pharmacological treatment of osteoarthritis of the knee: randomised controlled trial

I note the control group had a sheathed needle placed over the same
points as were used for the true acupuncture group of patients but the
skin was not punctured.

Surely therefore they must have known they were not getting
acupuncture?

Conversely the true treatment group must have known they were getting
acupuncture as they would have felt it. Indeed three had bruising.

This study is therefore worthless as it was not controlled.

May I suggest a better control method would have been to stick the
needles in any old place other than those "recognised to be effective for
osteoarthrosis of the knee".

I venture to suggest that the "benefit" would have been equal in both
groups indicating it was all placebo effect.

Finally I note that the doctor administering both treatments was
trained in acupuncture in Beijing, and presumably believed in it's
efficacy. Can we be sure no "nudge or wink" indication of the "treatment"
took place.

Mean time spent with the patients in each group being the same is no
guarantee that this did not occur

E Housley

Competing interests:
None declared