Group acupuncture reduced painful diabetic nerve pain during treatment regardless of weekly treatment frequency, demonstrating a practical option for diverse underserved patients.
Patients with painful diabetic nerve damage receiving care at a public safety-net hospital were randomly assigned to usual care alone or usual care combined with group acupuncture delivered once or twice weekly for twelve weeks. Pain was recorded daily and averaged weekly, while quality of life and related symptoms were assessed before treatment, during treatment, at treatment completion, and after treatment ended. Attendance and acceptability were also evaluated.
Most participants assigned to acupuncture attended treatment, supporting the feasibility of group delivery in a linguistically and racially diverse population. Acupuncture participants experienced greater pain reduction during the treatment period than those receiving usual care, with similar outcomes whether acupuncture was offered once or twice weekly. Quality of life improved among acupuncture recipients, although the difference from usual care was not clearly established, and pain benefits diminished after acupuncture stopped.
