A study published in the October 3, 2006 issue of Sleep Medicine evaluated whether acupuncture could improve symptoms of obstructive sleep apnea. Twenty-six subjects were randomly assigned to one of three groups:
• Standard acupuncture
• Sham acupuncture (superficial needling at non-acupuncture points)
• No treatment
The group receiving true acupuncture showed meaningful improvements. Researchers reported:
-
A 50.5% reduction in the apnea–hypopnea index
-
A 79% reduction in the apnea index
-
A 43% decrease in total respiratory events
In contrast, the untreated control group experienced a 53% increase in respiratory events over the same time period.
These findings suggest that acupuncture may offer measurable benefit for obstructive sleep apnea, although larger studies are needed to confirm the effect.
