Streitberger K, Kleinhenz J
Clinic of Anesthesiology, University of Heidelberg, Germany.
Lancet. 1998 Aug 1;352(9125):364-5. doi: 10.1016/S0140-6736(97)10471-8.
A problem acupuncture research has to face is the concept of a control group. If, in control groups, non-acupoint needling is done, physiological acupuncture effects are implied. Therefore the effects shown in this group are often close to those shown in the acupuncture group. In other trials, control groups have received obviously different treatments, such as transcutaneous electrical nervous stimulation or TENS-laser treatment; it is not clear if the effects of acupuncture are due only to the psychological effects of the treatment.
We developed a placebo acupuncture needle, with which it should be possible to simulate an acupuncture procedure without penetrating the skin. In a cross-over experiment with 60 volunteers we tested whether needling with the placebo needle feels any different from real acupuncture.
Of 60 volunteers, 54 felt a penetration with acupuncture (mean visual analogue scale [VAS] 13.4; SD 10.58) and 47 felt it with placebo (VAS 8.86; SD 10.55), 34 felt a dull pain sensation (DEQI) with acupuncture and 13 with placebo. None of the volunteers suspected that the needle may not have penetrated the skin.
The placebo needle is sufficiently credible to be used in investigations of the effects of acupuncture.
针刺研究必须面对的一个问题是对照组的概念。如果在对照组中进行非穴位针刺，就意味着存在生理针刺效应。因此，该组显示的效应通常与针刺组显示的效应相近。在其他试验中，对照组接受了明显不同的治疗，如经皮电刺激神经疗法或经皮电刺激神经-激光治疗；目前尚不清楚针刺的效果是否仅归因于治疗的心理效应。
我们研制了一种安慰剂针灸针，使用它应该可以模拟针刺过程而不穿透皮肤。在一项有60名志愿者参与的交叉试验中，我们测试了使用安慰剂针进行针刺与真正的针刺在感觉上是否有任何不同。
在60名志愿者中，54人在接受针刺时感觉到了针刺穿透皮肤（平均视觉模拟量表[VAS]评分为13.4；标准差为10.58），47人在接受安慰剂针刺时感觉到了针刺穿透皮肤（VAS评分为8.86；标准差为10.55），34人在接受针刺时有钝痛感（简化McGill疼痛问卷[DEQI]评分），13人在接受安慰剂针刺时有钝痛感。没有一名志愿者怀疑针可能没有穿透皮肤。
安慰剂针具有足够的可信度，可用于针刺效应的研究。
