Acupuncture patients have less back pain when less afraid of physical activity

Study shows acupuncture patients have less back pain when less afraid of physical activity

Upon investigating the psychological covariates of longitudinal changes in back-related disability among patients undergoing acupuncture, researchers found patients’ perception and self-efficacy for coping with pain were associated with changes in disability during the course of acupuncture treatment for lower-back pain.

In a longitudinal, postal questionnaire study, the researchers collected data at baseline (pretreatment), 2 weeks, and 3 and 6 months. A total of 485 patients were recruited from 83 acupuncturists before commencing acupuncture for back pain. The questionnaires measured four theories (fear-avoidance model, common-sense model, expectancy theory, social-cognitive theory), clinical and sociodemographic characteristics, and disability.

According to study data, a decrease in disability was commonly associated in patients who also had a decrease in fear-avoidance beliefs about physical activity and work, catastrophizing, consequences, concerns, emotions and pain identity.

The researchers also found patients who were less disabled had weaker fear-avoidance beliefs about physical activity, had more self-efficacy for coping, perceived less-severe consequences of back pain, had more positive outcome expectancies and appraised acupuncture appointments as less convenient.

The researchers concluded that positive changes in a patient’s belief about back pain might underpin the large nonspecific effects of acupuncture seen in trials and could be targeted clinically. – by Robert Linnehan

Source of the report is here.