Stimulated by Jyung et al 2026.[1] Visual abstract of PEACE trial from JAMA Oncology. EA – electroacupuncturePEACE – Personalised EA vs AA Comparative EffectivenessMSKCC – Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer CenterAA – auricular acupuncture (BFA here)BFA – battlefield acupunctureUC – usual careMSK – musculoskeletalBPI – brief pain inventoryPCS – pain catastrophising scalePC – pain catastrophising – … Continue reading EA and pain catastrophising 2026
Stimulated by Kwan et al 2026.[1] AI generated image to illustrate axSpA. axSpA – axial spondyloarthritisIF – impact factorRCT – randomised controlled trialEULAR – European Alliance of Associations for RheumatologySI – sacroiliacNRS – numerical rating scaleBASDAI – Bath ankylosing spondylitis disease activity indexBASFI – Bath functional indexBAS-G – Bath ankylosing spondylitis global scoreHAQ – health … Continue reading Acupuncture for axial spondyloarthritis 2026
Inspired by Wang et al 2026.[1] EA – electroacupunctureOA – osteoarthritisRCT – randomised controlled trialMA – manual acupunctureDSG – diclofenac sodium gelMCPjs – metacarpophalangeal jointsVAS – visual analogue scaleMCID – minimum clinically important differenceOTC – over the counter (used for medications available to buy without a prescription)QDS – quarter die sumendum (“to be taken 4 … Continue reading EA for hand OA 2026
Inspired by Hang et al 2026.[1] Relevant pages from the BMAS Chronic Pain Protocols book from 2021.Note that this is not exactly the same protocol used in the trial highlighted. EA – electroacupunctureOA – osteoarthritisOAK – OA of the kneeRCT – randomised controlled trialMRI – magnetic resonance imagingMA – manual acupunctureWOMAC – Western Ontario and … Continue reading EA for OAK 2026
Stimulated by Chen et al 2026.[1] Taken from Figure 2 in Chen et al 2026.[1] EA – electroacupuncturePHN – postherpetic neuralgiaIF – impact factorNRS – numerical rating scaleSD – standard deviationMCID – minimum clinically important differenceNMA – network meta-analysisPSQI – Pittsburgh sleep quality index – key to acronyms This is the largest (n=448) study on … Continue reading EA for PHN 2026
Stimulated by Zhang et al 2026.[1] Figure 1 from Yu et al 2023.[2] EA – electroacupunctureIF – impact factorWDR – wide dynamic rangeSD – Sprague DawleyCFA – complete Freund’s adjuvant (an oily antigenic mixture including heat-killed mycobacteria)PWR – paw withdrawal thresholdAAV – adeno-associated virusRVM – rostral ventromedial medullaGABA – gamma amino butyric acidChR2 – channel rhodopsin … Continue reading Contralateral EA and descending controls 2026
Stimulated by Lester et al 2026.[1] From Figure 1 of Lester et al 2026.[1] IF – impact factorCD – cluster of differentiation (classification for surface antigens on white blood cells) – key to acronyms I have been waiting a long time for an adverse event report of infection following acupuncture in a patient undergoing chemotherapy. … Continue reading Septic arthritis during chemotherapy
Stimulated by Sato et al 2026.[1] Photo by Lindsey Franzke on Unsplash. BMS – burning mouth syndromeRCT – randomised controlled trialIF – impact factorACUSAR – acupuncture for seasonal allergic rhinitisARC – acupuncture in routine care (part of the Modellvorhaben Akupunktur)BDI-II – Beck Depression Inventory IIVAS – visual analogue scaleANOVA – analysis of variance – key … Continue reading Acupuncture for BMS 2026
Stimulated by Herman et al 2026.[1] This is the visual abstract from the main paper reporting the trial (DeBar et al 2025).[2] cLBP – chronic low back painIF – impact factorCEA – cost-effectiveness analysisCUA – cost-utility analysisEA – enhanced acupuncture (rather confusing I’m afraid)SA – standard electroacupunctureUMC – usual medical careRMDQ – Roland-Morris Disability QuestionnaireMCID … Continue reading Acupuncture saves costs in cLBP 2026
Stimulated by Schlaeger et al 2026.[1] Acupuncture protocol for vulvodynia used in Schlaeger et al 2026,[1] and Schlaeger et al 2015.[2] RCT – randomised controlled trialIF – impact factorTYN – Takakura and Yajima needleMPQ – McGill pain questionnaire (computerised version)PINS – pain intensity number scale (0–10)API – average pain intensity (mean of current, least and … Continue reading Acupuncture for vulvodynia 2026
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