Effects of electroacupuncture frequencies on chronic low back pain in older adults: triple-blind, 12-months protocol for a randomized controlled trial
Abstract Background Low back pain (LBP) is the most frequent complaint in clinical practice. Electroacupuncture treatment may be effective; however, the supporting evidence is still limited, especially in older adults. Objective The current study is a randomized controlled trial that aims to evaluat...
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doaj-dd6325afe893496c97094adf98c6b2e32020-12-27T12:11:07ZengBMCTrials1745-62152019-12-012011910.1186/s13063-019-3813-6Effects of electroacupuncture frequencies on chronic low back pain in older adults: triple-blind, 12-months protocol for a randomized controlled trialSarina Francescato Torres0Ana Carolina Brandt de Macedo1Mateus Dias Antunes2Ingred Merllin Batista de Souza3Francisco Dimitre Rodrigo Pereira Santos4Adriana de Sousa do Espírito Santo5Flávia Ribeiro Jacob6Ariela Torres Cruz7Priscila de Oliveira Januário8Amélia Pasqual Marques9School of Medicine, Department of Physical Therapy, Speech Therapy and Occupational Therapy, Postgraduate Program in Rehabilitation Sciences, University of Sao PauloDepartment of Physical Therapy Prevention and Rehabilitation, Federal University of ParanaSchool of Medicine, Department of Physical Therapy, Speech Therapy and Occupational Therapy, Postgraduate Program in Rehabilitation Sciences, University of Sao PauloSchool of Medicine, Department of Physical Therapy, Speech Therapy and Occupational Therapy, Postgraduate Program in Rehabilitation Sciences, University of Sao PauloHigher Education Unit of the South of MaranhaoSchool of Medicine, Department of Physical Therapy, Speech Therapy and Occupational Therapy, Postgraduate Program in Rehabilitation Sciences, University of Sao PauloSchool of Medicine, Department of Physical Therapy, Speech Therapy and Occupational Therapy, Postgraduate Program in Rehabilitation Sciences, University of Sao PauloSchool of Medicine, Department of Physical Therapy, Speech Therapy and Occupational Therapy, Postgraduate Program in Rehabilitation Sciences, University of Sao PauloSchool of Medicine, Department of Physical Therapy, Speech Therapy and Occupational Therapy, Postgraduate Program in Rehabilitation Sciences, University of Sao PauloSchool of Medicine, Department of Physical Therapy, Speech Therapy and Occupational Therapy, Postgraduate Program in Rehabilitation Sciences, University of Sao PauloAbstract Background Low back pain (LBP) is the most frequent complaint in clinical practice. Electroacupuncture treatment may be effective; however, the supporting evidence is still limited, especially in older adults. Objective The current study is a randomized controlled trial that aims to evaluate the clinical efficacy of electroacupuncture in older adults with LBP. Methods A five-arm randomized controlled trial with patients and evaluators blinded to the group allocation. A total of 125 participants with non-specific LBP will be randomly assigned into one of five groups: three electroacupuncture groups (low, high, and alternating frequency); one control group; and one placebo group. The electroacupuncture will be applied twice a week (30 min per session) for five weeks. The primary clinical outcome measure will be pain intensity. The secondary outcomes include: quality of pain; physical functioning; perceived overall effect; emotional functionality; patient satisfaction; and psychosocial factors. Patients will be evaluated before the first session, immediately after the last, and followed up after six and 12 months to check the medium- and long-term effects. Discussion Although electroacupuncture is increasingly used to treat LBP, there is no guidance regarding the parameters used, which leads to inconsistent results. Thus, the effect of electroacupuncture (EA) on LBP remains controversial and requires more studies, especially in the older adult population. Conclusion This is the first randomized controlled trial to evaluate the efficacy of different frequencies of electroacupuncture for treating chronic LBP in older adults. This study will provide evidence on the effectiveness of electroacupuncture as an alternative treatment method for LBP and will entail wider debate about an appropriate acupuncture intervention in this population. Trial registration Clinicaltrials.gov, NCT03802045. Registered on 14 January 2019.https://doi.org/10.1186/s13063-019-3813-6AcupunctureAgedClinical trialElectroacupunctureLow back pain |
collection |
DOAJ |
language |
English |
format |
Article |
sources |
DOAJ |
author |
Sarina Francescato Torres Ana Carolina Brandt de Macedo Mateus Dias Antunes Ingred Merllin Batista de Souza Francisco Dimitre Rodrigo Pereira Santos Adriana de Sousa do Espírito Santo Flávia Ribeiro Jacob Ariela Torres Cruz Priscila de Oliveira Januário Amélia Pasqual Marques |
spellingShingle |
Sarina Francescato Torres Ana Carolina Brandt de Macedo Mateus Dias Antunes Ingred Merllin Batista de Souza Francisco Dimitre Rodrigo Pereira Santos Adriana de Sousa do Espírito Santo Flávia Ribeiro Jacob Ariela Torres Cruz Priscila de Oliveira Januário Amélia Pasqual Marques Effects of electroacupuncture frequencies on chronic low back pain in older adults: triple-blind, 12-months protocol for a randomized controlled trial Trials Acupuncture Aged Clinical trial Electroacupuncture Low back pain |
author_facet |
Sarina Francescato Torres Ana Carolina Brandt de Macedo Mateus Dias Antunes Ingred Merllin Batista de Souza Francisco Dimitre Rodrigo Pereira Santos Adriana de Sousa do Espírito Santo Flávia Ribeiro Jacob Ariela Torres Cruz Priscila de Oliveira Januário Amélia Pasqual Marques |
author_sort |
Sarina Francescato Torres |
title |
Effects of electroacupuncture frequencies on chronic low back pain in older adults: triple-blind, 12-months protocol for a randomized controlled trial |
title_short |
Effects of electroacupuncture frequencies on chronic low back pain in older adults: triple-blind, 12-months protocol for a randomized controlled trial |
title_full |
Effects of electroacupuncture frequencies on chronic low back pain in older adults: triple-blind, 12-months protocol for a randomized controlled trial |
title_fullStr |
Effects of electroacupuncture frequencies on chronic low back pain in older adults: triple-blind, 12-months protocol for a randomized controlled trial |
title_full_unstemmed |
Effects of electroacupuncture frequencies on chronic low back pain in older adults: triple-blind, 12-months protocol for a randomized controlled trial |
title_sort |
effects of electroacupuncture frequencies on chronic low back pain in older adults: triple-blind, 12-months protocol for a randomized controlled trial |
publisher |
BMC |
series |
Trials |
issn |
1745-6215 |
publishDate |
2019-12-01 |
description |
Abstract Background Low back pain (LBP) is the most frequent complaint in clinical practice. Electroacupuncture treatment may be effective; however, the supporting evidence is still limited, especially in older adults. Objective The current study is a randomized controlled trial that aims to evaluate the clinical efficacy of electroacupuncture in older adults with LBP. Methods A five-arm randomized controlled trial with patients and evaluators blinded to the group allocation. A total of 125 participants with non-specific LBP will be randomly assigned into one of five groups: three electroacupuncture groups (low, high, and alternating frequency); one control group; and one placebo group. The electroacupuncture will be applied twice a week (30 min per session) for five weeks. The primary clinical outcome measure will be pain intensity. The secondary outcomes include: quality of pain; physical functioning; perceived overall effect; emotional functionality; patient satisfaction; and psychosocial factors. Patients will be evaluated before the first session, immediately after the last, and followed up after six and 12 months to check the medium- and long-term effects. Discussion Although electroacupuncture is increasingly used to treat LBP, there is no guidance regarding the parameters used, which leads to inconsistent results. Thus, the effect of electroacupuncture (EA) on LBP remains controversial and requires more studies, especially in the older adult population. Conclusion This is the first randomized controlled trial to evaluate the efficacy of different frequencies of electroacupuncture for treating chronic LBP in older adults. This study will provide evidence on the effectiveness of electroacupuncture as an alternative treatment method for LBP and will entail wider debate about an appropriate acupuncture intervention in this population. Trial registration Clinicaltrials.gov, NCT03802045. Registered on 14 January 2019. |
topic |
Acupuncture Aged Clinical trial Electroacupuncture Low back pain |
url |
https://doi.org/10.1186/s13063-019-3813-6 |
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