Acupuncture did not produce clear improvements in Parkinson’s disease symptoms compared with a control procedure, despite small trends in daily functioning and quality of life.
Researchers conducted a double-blind, randomized pilot study in people with moderate Parkinson’s disease, assigning participants to either acupuncture or a nonacupuncture control procedure. Symptoms and wellbeing were assessed before and after treatment using measures of motor function, Parkinson’s disease-related quality of life, daily activities, and depressive symptoms.
Neither acupuncture nor the control procedure produced statistically clear changes in the measured outcomes. Participants receiving acupuncture showed modest, non-significant improvement trends in daily activities and overall Parkinson’s disease-related quality of life, but these patterns did not demonstrate a definitive treatment benefit.
