A 60-year-old woman considering acupuncture for knee pain.
Mrs A, an active 60-year-old woman, has a history of degenerative osteoarthritis of her knee with pain that has progressed over the past 8 years. She has undergone arthroscopic surgery for a meniscal tear and has taken nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), glucosamine, and chondroitin sulfate occasionally, but generally does not like taking medications. She is open to other therapeutic approaches and wants to know if acupuncture can help the pain, improve function, and stop her condition from progressing. The evidence for the effectiveness of acupuncture for knee pain and other common treatments, including exercise, NSAIDs, glucosamine and chondroitin, and intra-articular knee injections are compared, and costs and methods of acupuncture and selecting an acupuncturist are discussed.
Berman
Brian
B
Center for Integrative Medicine, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Kernan Hospital Mansion, Baltimore 21207, USA. bberman@compmed.umm.edu
D000082:Acetaminophen / Q000627:therapeutic use; D015670:Acupuncture Therapy / Q000191:economics; D000305:Adrenal Cortex Hormones / Q000627:therapeutic use; D000701:Analgesics, Opioid / Q000627:therapeutic use; D000894:Anti-Inflammatory Agents, Non-Steroidal / Q000627:therapeutic use; D002809:Chondroitin Sulfates / Q000627:therapeutic use; D005260:Female; D005944:Glucosamine / Q000627:therapeutic use; D006801:Humans; D006820:Hyaluronic Acid / Q000627:therapeutic use; D008875:Middle Aged; D020370:Osteoarthritis, Knee / Q000150:complications / Q000628:therapy*; D010146:Pain / Q000209:etiology; D059408:Pain Management
D000305:Adrenal Cortex Hormones; D000701:Analgesics, Opioid; D000894:Anti-Inflammatory Agents, Non-Steroidal; D000082:Acetaminophen; D006820:Hyaluronic Acid; D002809:Chondroitin Sulfates; D005944:Glucosamine