Acupuncture gets thumbs up for complementary treatment of gout

 Acupuncture is an effective complementary treatment for gout says new research published in Rheumatology.

A team from South Korea assessed 10 trials involving 852 people with gout and came to the conclusion that acupuncture is effective when combined with traditional gout treatments.

“The results of the studies included here suggest that acupuncture is efficacious as complementary therapy for gouty arthritis patients,” they said. “More research and well-designed, rigorous and large clinical trials are necessary to address these issues.”

Arthritis Research UK now says that acupuncture is “effective in relieving the pain of low back pain, osteoarthritis and fibromyalgia. The charity is currently running a trial to examine the effectiveness of a nurse-led package of care for gout patients in a general practice setting.”