Impact of Acupuncture on Vasomotor Rhinitis

Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich

Status and phase: Completed; Phase 3

Conditions: Acupuncture; Vasomotor Rhinitis

Treatments: Device: Acupuncture; Device: Sham-laser acupuncture

Study type: Interventional

Funder types: Other

Identifiers

NCT00682162

MPC-UM-0001-DI

Details and patient eligibility

About

Chronic rhinitis without an allergic or infectious aetiology (vasomotor rhinitis) is a common disease for which there are only poor therapeutic treatment options. The current placebo controlled partially double blinded pilot study evaluated the effects of acupuncture on the symptoms of vasomotor rhinitis.

Enrollment: 24 patients

Sex: All

Ages: 18 to 60 years old

Volunteers: No Healthy Volunteers

Inclusion criteria

• term of sickness > 3 month
• negative allergic testing

Exclusion criteria

• term of sickness < 3 month
• previous nasal surgeries
• polyposis nasi
• contraindications regarding acupuncture (such as: risk of bleeding, pregnancy)
• psychologic disorders
• drug addiction
• autoimmune disease
• other severe disease

Trial design

Primary purpose: Treatment

Allocation: Randomized

Interventional model: Parallel Assignment

Masking: Double Blind

---

24 participants in 2 patient groups

Sham-laser acupuncture

Sham Comparator group

Description:

The sham-laser acupuncture treatment consisted of 5 sessions, all patients completed a recovery time after treatment of 30 min duration. The sessions were administered over a period of 5 weeks (one session per week). Sham-laser acupuncture was applied at the same points as the acupuncture treatment. A deactivated laser pen (Seirin, 3B Scientific GmbH, Hamburg, Germany) that could only beam normal red light rather than laser was used. The total number of acupuncture points utilized was equal to the acupuncture group. Every point was treated for 30 sec with the total treatment time of 20 minutes.

Treatment:

Device: Sham-laser acupuncture

Acupuncture

Active Comparator group

Description:

The treatment consisted of 5 sessions, all patients completed a recovery time after treatment of 30 min duration. The sessions were administered over a period of 5 weeks (one session per week). The acupuncture treatment was semi-standardised. It consisted of a basic pool of 6 body acupuncture points. Five additional acupuncture body points together with auricular points formed an individual pool. After needle insertion, the needle was manipulated until the subject obtained the de-Qi response (a deep aching or full feeling at the needle, \[22\]). After obtaining the de-Qi response, there was no further manipulation of the needle. Each session lasted 20 minutes.

Treatment:

Device: Acupuncture