A large randomized, controlled trial published in Annals of Internal Medicine evaluated acupuncture for knee osteoarthritis in 570 patients. Participants received either true acupuncture or sham acupuncture for 26 weeks. Those receiving acupuncture had significantly better pain and function scores on the WOMAC index at both 8 and 26 weeks. The authors concluded that acupuncture provided meaningful pain relief and functional improvement as an adjunctive therapy for knee osteoarthritis.
Supporting these findings, a study published in Rheumatology followed 736 patients with chronic hip or knee osteoarthritis pain. After an average of eight acupuncture treatments, participants reported significant improvements in pain and quality of life, with benefits persisting at six-month follow-up.
