Study on the effect of acupuncture on chronic prostatitis

The 2018 study investigated the effectiveness of acupuncture in patients with chronic prostatitis or chronic pelvic pain syndrome. The researchers conducted a 32-week randomized controlled trial, including 8 weeks of treatment followed by 24 weeks of follow-up, to compare acupuncture and sham acupuncture. Participants with chronic prostatitis/chronic pelvic pain syndrome were randomly assigned to acupuncture or non-invasive sham acupuncture. The primary outcome was the change in NIH-CPSI (National Institutes of Health Chronic Prostatitis Symptom Index) from baseline to week 8. Secondary outcomes were NIH-CPSI subscale scores, pain intensity, I-PSS (International Prostate Symptom Score), global response rate , and satisfaction ratings.

A total of 68 participants aged between 18 and 50 years were included in the study and included in the intention-to-treat analyses. Baseline characteristics were comparable in both groups. The reduction in NIH-CPSI total score differed significantly between the two groups at weeks 8, 20 and 32 with a difference of -5.7 (95% CI -7.8--3.7), -6.7 (95% CI -8.9--4.5) and -7.4 (95% CI -9.8--5.1) respectively ( p <0.001 in each case). All differences were greater than the minimum clinically important difference of 4 points.

In conclusion, the researchers found that acupuncture showed clinical and long-lasting benefits compared to sham acupuncture for chronic prostatitis/chronic pelvic pain syndrome.