The C.A.M. Report
Complementary and Alternative Medicine: Fair, Balanced, and to the Point
  • About this web log

    This blog ran from 2006 to 2016 and was intended as an objective and dispassionate source of information on the latest CAM research. Since my background is in pharmacy and allopathic medicine, I view all CAM as advancing through the development pipeline to eventually become integrated into mainstream medical practice. Some will succeed while others fail. But all are treated fairly here.

  • About the author

    John Russo, Jr., PharmD, is president of The MedCom Resource, Inc. Previously, he was senior vice president of medical communications at www.Vicus.com, a complementary and alternative medicine website.

  • Common sense considerations

    The material on this weblog is for informational purposes. It is not medical advice or counsel. Be smart, consult your health professional before using CAM.

  • Recent Posts

  • Recent Comments

    New study supports acupuncture to treat rhinitis

    According to Acupuncture.com, “The ideal time to treat seasonal allergic rhinitis using acupuncture is at least one month before symptoms normally begin.”

    Here’s a study where acupuncture helped ongoing rhinitis symptoms.

    First, the details.

    • 80 patients with persistent allergic rhinitis (PAR) were randomly assigned to real or sham acupuncture.
    • Participants were treated twice weekly for 8 weeks and followed up for another 12 weeks.

    And, the results.

    • After 8 weeks’ treatment, the weekly difference in total nasal symptom score was significant better with real vs sham acupuncture.
    • The decrease in individual symptom score was significantly greater with real acupuncture for rhinorrhea but not other symptoms.
    • At 12 weeks, the differences were maintained.
    • Moreover, the differences from baseline to 12 weeks in all four individual symptom scores (nasal obstruction, sneezing, rhinorrhea and nasal itch) were significantly greater for the real vs sham group.

    The bottom line?
    In 2006, a reanalysis of the data (meta-analysis) from other studies provided no clear evidence for the efficacy of acupuncture in rhinitis and asthma.

    The authors of this study concluded, the “findings suggest that acupuncture is effective in the symptomatic treatment of PAR.”

    Interestingly, Chinese-language studies are positive, here, here, and here.

    9/19/07 21:42 JR

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