Stimulated by DeBar et al 2025.[1] Photo of Multnomah Falls in Oregan by Makayla Asuncion from Pexels. cLBP – chronic low back painIF – impact factorEA – enhanced acupuncture (rather confusing I’m afraid)SA – standard electroacupunctureUMC – usual medical careRMDQ – Roland-Morris Disability QuestionnaireMCID – minimal clinically important differencePEG – pain, enjoyment, and general activity … Continue reading Acupuncture for cLBP 2025
Stimulated by Gyeltshen et al 2025.[1] Photo by Pema Gyamtsho on Pexels.com IF – impact factorEiC – editor in chiefSLR – straight leg raising (the most famous test for sciatica, but not a terribly good one) – key to acronyms This is a somewhat smaller trial (n=70) than the last one I highlighted on sciatic … Continue reading Acupuncture vs gabapentin for sciatica in Bhutan
Inspired by Kawi et al 2025.[1] Vaccaria hispanica seeds from the Government of Canada seed identification site. APA – auricular point acupressurecLBP – chronic low back painIF – impact factorMSK – musculoskeletalNRS – numerical rating scaleRMDQ – Roland-Morris Disability Questionnaire – key to acronyms This is a moderately large 3-arm trial (n=272) from the US. … Continue reading APA in cLBP 2025
Stimulated by Shi et al 2025.[1] Diagram illustrating the acupuncture protocol from Shi et al 2025 [1] – unilateral points are in the unaffected side. LDH – lumbar disc herniationRCT – randomised controlled trialVAS – visual analogue scaleJOA – Japanese Orthopaedic Association score for low back painSIJ – sacroiliac jointSR – systematic reviewGRADE – Grading … Continue reading Acupuncture plus manipulation in LDH
Stimulated by Hoheisel et al 2025.[1] Top part of Figure 1 in Hoheisel et al 2025.[1] DRG – dorsal root ganglionFG – fluorogold or fluorochrome yellowc-fos – a protein from the Fos family widely used as a marker for neuronal activityc-fos-ir – c-fos immunoreactivityDH – dorsal horn (of the spinal cord)VLP – ventral posterolateral nucleus … Continue reading Muscle pain – a neuroanatomical basis
Inspired by a variety of recent case reports. AI generated image. AEs – adverse eventsPDP – personal development planCXR – chest x ray filmSPs – spinous processesBP – blood pressuremmHg – millimetres of mercury (units of fluid pressure)HR – heart ratebpm – beats per minuteTHA – total hip arthroplastyIBD – inflammatory bowel diseaseESI – epidural … Continue reading Acupuncture AEs 2024
Stimulated by Jorgensen et al 2024.[1] This is a section from the BMAS TrP chart with referral patterns relevant to the topic of this blog. MSK – musculoskeletalLS – lumbosacralIF – impact factorEDX – electrodiagnostic medicineNCS – nerve conduction studiesMPS – myofascial pain syndromeFAI – femoroacetabular impingementTrPs – trigger points (myofascial is implied)GTPS – greater trochanteric … Continue reading MSK mimics of LS radiculopathy – part 2
Inspired by Tu et al 2024.[1] IF – impact factorBUCM – Beijing University of Chinese MedicineRCT – randomised controlled trialVAS – visual analogue scoreODI – Oswestry Disability IndexMCID – minimum important clinical difference – key to acronyms A general internal medicine physician colleague from UCLH picked up this paper from JAMA Internal Medicine (IF 39.0) … Continue reading Acupuncture for chronic sciatica 2024
Inspired by Lu et al 2024.[1] Moraine Lake, Alberta, by John Lee on Unsplash. ABCHIP – Alberta Complementary Health Integration ProjectBPI – brief pain inventoryPSQI – Pittsburgh sleep quality indexPHQ9 – patient health questionnaire 9PROMIS – patient-reported outcomes measurement information system [2]SF – short formEQ-5D-5L – EuroQol Group 5D-5L instrument [3]NRS – numerical rating scaleQoL – … Continue reading Acupuncture in Alberta 2024
Stimulated by Zhu et al 2024.[1] DLSS – degenerative lumbar spinal stenosisIF – impact factorRCT – randomised controlled trialNRS – numerical rating scaleRMDQ – Roland Morris disability questionnaireMCID – minimum clinical important differenceSSSQ – Swiss spinal stenosis questionnaire – key to acronyms This paper in Annals of Internal Medicine (IF 39.2) reports on a multi-centre … Continue reading Acupuncture for DLSS
The BMAS Blog 
You must be logged in to post a comment.