Acupuncture and Traditional Chinese Medicine for Hot Flushes in Menopause: A Randomized Trial.

Baccetti, Sonia; Da Frè, Monica; Becorpi, Angelamaria; Faedda, Marina; Guerrera, Antonella; Monechi, M. Valeria; Munizzi, Rosa Maria; Parazzini, Fabio

Objective: To evaluate the effect of acupuncture on hot flushes and other menopause-related symptoms used in an integrated system, including such therapeutic techniques as diet therapy and Tuina self-massage. Design: Randomized trial. Setting: Outpatient center. Participants: One hundred women in spontaneous menopause with at least three episodes of hot flushes daily were randomly allocated to two treatment groups (50 per group): Women in group A were given diet, self-massage training, and treatment with acupuncture, and women in group B (the control group) were given the same diet and self-massage training, but treatment with acupuncture started 6 weeks after they were enrolled into the study. Intervention: Acupuncture treatments were scheduled twice weekly for 6 consecutive weeks. Outcome measures: Mean change in frequency and/or intensity in menopause-related symptoms were estimated by questionnaire after treatment at week 4. Results: Treatment with acupuncture significantly reduced the occurrence of hot flushes and sudden sweating ( p<.001). Other symptoms (sleep disorders, tightness in the chest, irritability, bone pain, feeling depressed) significantly improved. Conclusions: Acupuncture in an integrated system that includes therapeutic techniques such as diet therapy and Tuina self-massage can be used to treat hot flushes and selected symptoms in postmenopausal women.

ITALY; HOT flashes; ACUPUNCTURE; ALTERNATIVE medicine; ANGER; CHI-squared test; CLINICAL trials; COMBINED modality therapy; CONFIDENCE intervals; MENTAL depression; DIET therapy; LONGITUDINAL method; MASSAGE therapy; CHINESE medicine; PAIN; QUESTIONNAIRES; REGRESSION analysis; STATISTICAL sampling; HEALTH self-care; SLEEP disorders; T-test (Statistics); WOMEN'S health; PERIMENOPAUSE; STATISTICAL significance; RANDOMIZED controlled trials; PRE-tests & post-tests; DATA analysis software; DESCRIPTIVE statistics; PREVENTION

Journal of Alternative & Complementary Medicine, 2014, Vol 20, Issue 7, p550

1075-5535

Academic Journal

10.1089/acm.2012.0499