Yiu Yan-mun, Ng Siu-man, Tsui Yin-ling, Chan Yat-lung
School of Chinese Medicine, University of Hong Kong, China.
Zhong Xi Yi Jie He Xue Bao. 2007 Nov;5(6):630-3. doi: 10.3736/jcim20070606.
To evaluate the efficacy of acupuncture in treating chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) in Hong Kong.
A single-blinded, randomized controlled trial design was adopted. Participants meeting inclusion criteria were randomly assigned to a treatment and a control group according to 1:1 ratio, resulting in an effective sample size of 99, with 50 and 49 patients in treatment and control group respectively. The same set of acupuncture points, which were selected according to traditional Chinese medicine theories, was applied in both groups, while conventional needle acupuncture was applied in treatment group and sham acupuncture (without skin penetration) was applied in control group. Schedule of treatment was the same in both groups, i.e. twice a week for 4 weeks. Key outcome measures were Chalder's Fatigue Scale, diagnostic criteria for CFS of the US's Centre for Disease Control and SF-12 health-related quality of life (HQOL) questionnaire. Adverse events, if any, were recorded.
Improvements in physical and mental fatigue and HQOL in both groups were observed, but the improvements in treatment group were significantly bigger than in control group (P<0.01 or P<0.05). No adverse events occurred.
Acupuncture is a safe, effective treatment for CFS.
评估针灸治疗香港慢性疲劳综合征（CFS）的疗效。
采用单盲随机对照试验设计。符合纳入标准的参与者按1:1比例随机分为治疗组和对照组，有效样本量为99例，治疗组和对照组分别有50例和49例患者。两组均采用根据中医理论选取的同一组穴位，治疗组采用传统针刺，对照组采用假针刺（不穿透皮肤）。两组治疗方案相同，即每周2次，共4周。主要结局指标为查尔德疲劳量表、美国疾病控制中心CFS诊断标准和SF-12健康相关生活质量（HQOL）问卷。记录所有不良事件（如有）。
两组患者的身心疲劳及HQOL均有改善，但治疗组的改善程度显著大于对照组（P<0.01或P<0.05）。未发生不良事件。
针灸是治疗CFS的一种安全、有效的方法。
