Acupuncture Provides Relief for Older Adults with Chronic Back Pain

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More than a third of older adults nationwide suffer from chronic low back pain. Some turn to pain medications and heat or ice therapy for relief. Previous studies have shown acupuncture—a traditional Chinese medicine technique that uses thin needles inserted into the skin at specific points—also can help reduce or eliminate back pain.

To study the effectiveness of acupuncture in older adults, a team lead by Drs. Lynn DeBar and Andrea Cook at Kaiser Permanente launched a large randomized clinical trial called BackInAction. The team enrolled 800 adults ages 65 or older who had low back pain for at least three months. Participants were divided into three groups. One received usual medical care, which generally involved prescribed medications and physical therapy. Another received standard acupuncture of 8 to 15 sessions over 12 weeks in addition to their usual medical care. The third group received enhanced acupuncture, which entailed four to six additional acupuncture sessions over the 12 weeks.

Participants submitted self-assessed results, based on their back pain and physical limitations, at intervals of 3, 6, and 12 months. Results were published in JAMA Network Open.

The study showed that participants receiving standard or enhanced acupuncture fared better than those receiving usual medical care alone. At the six-month and 12-month assessments, both acupuncture groups had less disability from pain. The acupuncture groups also had reduced pain intensity and greater physical function after six months. Acupuncture treatment was associated with fewer anxiety symptoms as well.  Adverse effects were few and similar between groups.

“Our clinical results suggest that acupuncture is working as well as many things that are more familiar to people,” DeBar explains. We found that the size of this effect, while modest, was positive and sustained.”

Cook added, “Acupuncture offers a less invasive option that has a better safety profile than a lot of the common treatments for back pain in older adults.” —by Yolanda Jones, adapted from NIH Research Matters