At a glance
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Acupuncture for Insertional Achilles Tendinopathy in the Primary Care Setting: a Randomized Comparative Effectiveness Trial
In Brief
A clinical study evaluating Acupuncture and Home Exercise and Home Exercise Alone for Insertional Achilles Tendinopathy. Completed, enrolled 38 participants across 2 sites.
Detailed Summary
The purpose of this study is to compare acupuncture plus a prescribed home exercise program versus a prescribed home exercise program alone to determine which has better outcomes at improving pain relief and physical function in adult patients with insertional Achilles tendinopathy. The investigators want to compare a combination of two standard of care treatments (acupuncture plus a prescribed home exercise program) versus a single standard of care treatment (a prescribed home exercise program) to determine which has better outcomes with improving pain relief and physical function in patients with insertional Achilles tendinopathy. The investigators hypothesize that there will be a significant improvement in pain and functional outcomes, both acutely and over time, in the acupuncture plus a prescribed home exercise program group versus the group performing a prescribed home exercise program alone. The investigators will measure Achilles pain relief and physical function immediately prior to treatment (baseline), immediately after the initial treatment at day 1, 2 weeks, 4 weeks, 6 weeks, and 12 weeks using the Victorian Institute of Sports Assessment - Achilles Questionnaire (VISA-A). After 3 months, patients with continuing pain in the non-acupuncture arm will be given the option to crossover to the acupuncture arm of the study for an additional 12 weeks of treatment with the subject's concurrence.
Study Details
Timeline
Interventions
Acupuncture (needles will be placed at BL 60, BL 61, KI 3, KI 4 with needles directed into the Achilles tendon. Needles inserted until a firm catch of the needle entering the tendon was appreciated. Energy (a small electrical current) is placed from KI 3(-) KI 4(+) and BL 61 (-) BL 60(+) at 30 Hz for 15min) plus the prescribed home exercise program
The prescribed home exercise program alone.