Acupuncture treatment can improve walking gait in patients with multiple sclerosis, report Portuguese investigators. Gait impairment was evaluated using the 25-foot walk test in 20 individuals with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis, who were then randomised to either verum or sham acupuncture. Verum acupuncture was administered at Liangqiu ST-34 Weizhong BL-40 and Chengshan BL-57, while sham acupuncture consisted of needling at non-acupuncture points located two cun laterally to the verum points. Verum acupuncture led to a significant decrease in time taken to walk 25 feet. By contrast, differences in time to walk 25 feet were not statistically significant for sham acupuncture. Following verum acupuncture, 95% of patients showed an improvement in 25-foot walk test, compared with only 45 % for sham acupuncture.
Effects of Acupuncture on Gait of Patients with Multiple Sclerosis.
J Altern Complement Med. 2017 Apr 14. doi: 10.1089/acm.2016.0355.
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