title: Traditional Chinese acupuncture versus minimal acupuncture for mild-to-moderate knee osteoarthritis: a protocol for a randomised, controlled pilot trial.
abstract: Knee osteoarthritis (KOA) is one of the most common musculoskeletal disorders. Acupuncture is a popular form of complementary medicine for musculoskeletal conditions, although the evidence is inconclusive. Our objective is to evaluate the efficacy of traditional Chinese acupuncture for pain relief and function improvement in mild-to-moderate knee osteoarthritis (TCAKOA) participants.
  
  
  
  42 patients will be recruited who have been diagnosed with mild-to-moderate KOA and randomly allocated in equal proportions to traditional Chinese acupuncture or minimal acupuncture. They will receive acupuncture for 24 sessions over 8 weeks. The primary end point is success rate, which will be calculated according to a change from baseline in Western Ontario and McMaster Universities Osteoarthritis Index pain and function scores at 8 weeks. Secondary end points include pain and function measurement, global change, the quality of life and the use of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (Celebrex, Pfizer) at 8, 16 and 26 weeks.
  
  
  
  Ethical approval of this study has been granted by the Research Ethical Committee of Beijing Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine Affiliated to Capital Medical University (permission number: 2016BL-010-02). Written informed consent will be obtained from all participants. Outcomes of the trial will be disseminated through peer-reviewed publications.
  
  
  
  ISRCTN14016893; Pre-results.
authors.affiliation: Department of Acupuncture and Moxibustion, Beijing Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine affiliated to Capital Medical University, Beijing, China.|Department of Medicine, School of Medicine, Shandong University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Jinan, China.
authors.forename: Ning
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Sun
authors.affiliation: Department of Acupuncture and Moxibustion, Beijing Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine affiliated to Capital Medical University, Beijing, China.
authors.forename: Guang-Xia
authors.initials: GX
authors.lastname: Shi
authors.affiliation: Department of Acupuncture and Moxibustion, Beijing Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine affiliated to Capital Medical University, Beijing, China.
authors.forename: Jian-Feng
authors.initials: JF
authors.lastname: Tu
authors.affiliation: Department of Acupuncture and Moxibustion, Beijing Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine affiliated to Capital Medical University, Beijing, China.
authors.forename: Yong-Ting
authors.initials: YT
authors.lastname: Li
authors.affiliation: Department of Medicine, School of Medicine, Shandong University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Jinan, China.
authors.forename: Li-Wen
authors.initials: LW
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.affiliation: Department of Medicine, School of Medicine, Shandong University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Jinan, China.
authors.forename: Yan
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Cao
authors.affiliation: Department of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Beijing Friendship Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing, China.
authors.forename: Yi
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Du
authors.affiliation: Department of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Beijing Friendship Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing, China.
authors.forename: Jing-Jie
authors.initials: JJ
authors.lastname: Zhao
authors.affiliation: Department of Acupuncture and Moxibustion, Beijing Jishuitan Hospital, Peking University, Beijing, China.
authors.forename: Da-Chang
authors.initials: DC
authors.lastname: Xiong
authors.affiliation: Department of Acupuncture and Moxibustion, Beijing Jishuitan Hospital, Peking University, Beijing, China.
authors.forename: Hai-Kun
authors.initials: HK
authors.lastname: Hou
authors.affiliation: Department of Acupuncture and Moxibustion, Beijing Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine affiliated to Capital Medical University, Beijing, China.
authors.forename: Cun-Zhi
authors.initials: CZ
authors.lastname: Liu
mesh_terms: D015670:Acupuncture Therapy / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000379:methods*; D000368:Aged; D002681:China; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007719:Knee Joint / Q000503:physiopathology; D016015:Logistic Models; D008297:Male; D008516:Medicine, Chinese Traditional; D008875:Middle Aged; D020370:Osteoarthritis, Knee / Q000628:therapy*; D059408:Pain Management / Q000379:methods*; D010147:Pain Measurement; D010865:Pilot Projects; D011788:Quality of Life; D012107:Research Design; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D016896:Treatment Outcome
keywords: Acupuncture; Knee Osteoarthritis; PAIN MANAGEMENT