Acupuncture combined with conventional therapy versus conventional therapy alone for chronic pelvic pain in women

TL;DR

Adding acupuncture to standard treatment for chronic pelvic pain in women improves pain, inflammation, sleep, and quality of life more than standard treatment alone.

Contribution

Demonstrates that combining acupuncture with conventional therapy yields better clinical outcomes for chronic pelvic pain than conventional therapy alone.

Findings

Combined therapy achieved a higher overall response rate (94.55% vs. 78.18%) and greater pain reduction.

Inflammatory markers decreased by 60% with combined therapy versus 32–37% with conventional therapy.

Combined therapy improved sleep quality and quality of life scores more than conventional therapy.

Abstract

Chronic pelvic pain (CPP) affects 15% of reproductive-aged women, with current treatments showing limited efficacy. This study evaluated whether combining acupuncture with conventional therapy improves outcomes compared to conventional therapy alone.

This prospective observational cohort study enrolled 110 women with CPP at a tertiary hospital from January 2022–2023. Patients self-selected treatment: study group (n = 55) received conventional therapy (tinidazole and acetaminophen) plus standardized electroacupuncture at specific acupoints (SP6, ST36, ST29, CV3, CV4, CV6) for 30-min daily sessions; control group (n = 55) received conventional therapy alone. Both groups were treated for three menstrual cycles. Primary outcome was Visual Analog Scale (VAS) pain score. Secondary outcomes included clinical efficacy rate, inflammatory biomarkers (IL-6, IL-1β, TNF-α), Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI), and SF-36 quality of life scores.

All participants completed treatment. Combined therapy achieved superior overall response rate (94.55% vs. 78.18%, p = 0.01) and greater VAS reduction (4.68 ± 0.68 vs. 2.88 ± 0.89 points, p < 0.05). Inflammatory markers decreased approximately 60% with combined therapy versus 32–37% with conventional therapy (p < 0.05). Normal sleep quality (PSQI ≤5) was achieved by 72.7% versus 38.2% of patients (p < 0.05). SF-36 physical and mental component scores improved by 32.3 and 30.6 points, respectively, with combined therapy, versus 20.5 and 20.1 points with conventional therapy (p < 0.05). No serious adverse events occurred.

Combining acupuncture with conventional pharmacotherapy provides clinically meaningful improvements in pain, inflammation, sleep, and quality of life in women with CPP, supporting its integration into multimodal treatment strategies.

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