If acupuncture helps, why do we need to compare it to something else?
"Such an argument (for placebo control) is not relevant to an assessment of the clinical effectiveness of acupuncture because in everyday practice, patients benefit from placebo effects."
I do not agree with this argument. The studied intervention must be compared against something. Otherwise all that is demonstrated is that something is better than nothing. Should there then be any surprise in these outcomes?
The study may serve to demonstrate that acupuncture doesn't not work, but conversely no argument can be made here that it does. This no-need-for-placebo is prior presented by the author: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=Abstract&list_uids=12449085) Does not placebo vs. acupuncture for pain have "psychological credibility" because any intervention will likely have an impact on a subjects surveyed perception of pain? We indeed may need to understand the ethics of using a sham in study, or be wary of discounting a potential beneficial intervention just because it hasn't been proved.
Seldom will doing something have worse outcomes than doing nothing when parameters can be so subjective. Please compare acupuncture to equal sessions of massage, meditation to soft music, or visits with one's hair stylist, but compare it to something. How else will we ever know whether poking little pins in people has any merit versus anything else we might do?
Until such a study takes place, we can not recommend acupuncture for headaches any more than we can massage, music, or even barber visits. Not saying that we shouldn't, after all, the study shows that doing something beyond standard treatment is in fact better than doing nothing.
-dras
I do not agree with this argument. The studied intervention must be compared against something. Otherwise all that is demonstrated is that something is better than nothing. Should there then be any surprise in these outcomes?
The study may serve to demonstrate that acupuncture doesn't not work, but conversely no argument can be made here that it does. This no-need-for-placebo is prior presented by the author: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=Abstract&list_uids=12449085) Does not placebo vs. acupuncture for pain have "psychological credibility" because any intervention will likely have an impact on a subjects surveyed perception of pain? We indeed may need to understand the ethics of using a sham in study, or be wary of discounting a potential beneficial intervention just because it hasn't been proved.
Seldom will doing something have worse outcomes than doing nothing when parameters can be so subjective. Please compare acupuncture to equal sessions of massage, meditation to soft music, or visits with one's hair stylist, but compare it to something. How else will we ever know whether poking little pins in people has any merit versus anything else we might do?
Until such a study takes place, we can not recommend acupuncture for headaches any more than we can massage, music, or even barber visits. Not saying that we shouldn't, after all, the study shows that doing something beyond standard treatment is in fact better than doing nothing.
-dras
posted by nawledge at
4:26 PM
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