Efficacy of Acupuncture for Chronic Low Back Pain

Completed · Phase 3

Conditions studied: Low Back Pain

In brief

This is a trial to clarify the extent to which acupuncture needling can diminish the effect of chronic back pain on patient functioning and symptoms.

Key facts

Study ID

NCT00065585

Run by

Kaiser Permanente

People needed

640

Starts

2004-04-01

Expected to finish

2007-06-01

Last updated by the study team

2019-10-07

Who can join

Age: 18 and older, up to 70. Sex: any. Healthy volunteers: not accepted.

You may qualify if…

• Diagnosis of low back pain including lumbago, unspecified backache, sprains and strains of sacroiliac, lumbar, sacral, or unspecified regions of the spine
• Back pain must be of at least 3 months duration and rated at least 3 on a symptom bothersomeness scale

You may not qualify if…

• non-mechanical causes or potential causes of low back pain (i.e. sciatica, underlying systemic or visceral disease, pregnancy, spondylolisthesis, spinal stenosis, cancer or unexplained weight loss, recent vertebral fracture)
• previous treatment with acupuncture
• inappropriate candidate for acupuncture (i.e. severe clotting disorders or on anticoagulant medication, heart pacemakers)
• characteristics complicating the interpretation of the findings (severe or progressive neurologic deficits, back surgery within the prior three years, planning to seek other treatment for back pain)
• characteristics related to ability to complete the study protocol (unable to speak English, plans to move out of town)

Where it is running

• Kaiser Permanente Northern California, Kaiser Foundation Research Institute — Oakland, California, United States
• Group Health Cooperative, Center for Health Studies — Seattle, Washington, United States

Full record on ClinicalTrials.gov

Trial information comes from ClinicalTrials.gov and is refreshed daily. TrialsForMe does not provide medical care and does not run the studies it lists.