Medically Unresponsive Foot Pain Treated Successfully with Acupuncture

A study of 67 patients with chronic foot pain treated with an average 4 to 5 acupuncture sessions, demonstrated excellent objective and subjective relief in 50. Clinical records were searched to find the number of medication prescriptions and physical therapy treatments given in the year prior to the start of acupuncture treatment, and these figures were compared to those for the subsequent year. A standard, paired Meridian approach in 16 patients was compared to a simple 5 point treatment in 51. This simple method appears superior. Therapy failed (<25% benefit) in 13%. It was effective in 3 out of 5 with reflex sympathetic dystrophy symptoms in the foot. A beneficial response to acupuncture was statistically less likely (P=0.04) in patients with major trauma or surgery to the foot.