| Title |
Alexander Technique Lessons or Acupuncture Sessions for Persons With Chronic Neck Pain: A Randomized Trial.
|
|---|---|
| Published in |
ACP Journal Club, November 2015
|
| DOI | 10.7326/m15-0667 |
| Pubmed ID | |
| Authors |
Hugh MacPherson, Helen Tilbrook, Stewart Richmond, Julia Woodman, Kathleen Ballard, Karl Atkin, Martin Bland, Janet Eldred, Holly Essex, Catherine Hewitt, Ann Hopton, Ada Keding, Harriet Lansdown, Steve Parrott, David Torgerson, Aniela Wenham, Ian Watt |
| Abstract |
Management of chronic neck pain may benefit from additional active self-care-oriented approaches. To evaluate clinical effectiveness of Alexander Technique lessons or acupuncture versus usual care for persons with chronic, nonspecific neck pain. Three-group randomized, controlled trial. (Current Controlled Trials: ISRCTN15186354). U.K. primary care. Persons with neck pain lasting at least 3 months, a score of at least 28% on the Northwick Park Questionnaire (NPQ) for neck pain and associated disability, and no serious underlying pathology. 12 acupuncture sessions or 20 one-to-one Alexander lessons (both 600 minutes total) plus usual care versus usual care alone. NPQ score (primary outcome) at 0, 3, 6, and 12 months (primary end point) and Chronic Pain Self-Efficacy Scale score, quality of life, and adverse events (secondary outcomes). 517 patients were recruited, and the median duration of neck pain was 6 years. Mean attendance was 10 acupuncture sessions and 14 Alexander lessons. Between-group reductions in NPQ score at 12 months versus usual care were 3.92 percentage points for acupuncture (95% CI, 0.97 to 6.87 percentage points) (P = 0.009) and 3.79 percentage points for Alexander lessons (CI, 0.91 to 6.66 percentage points) (P = 0.010). The 12-month reductions in NPQ score from baseline were 32% for acupuncture and 31% for Alexander lessons. Participant self-efficacy improved for both interventions versus usual care at 6 months (P < 0.001) and was significantly associated (P < 0.001) with 12-month NPQ score reductions (acupuncture, 3.34 percentage points [CI, 2.31 to 4.38 percentage points]; Alexander lessons, 3.33 percentage points [CI, 2.22 to 4.44 percentage points]). No reported serious adverse events were considered probably or definitely related to either intervention. Practitioners belonged to the 2 main U.K.-based professional associations, which may limit generalizability of the findings. Acupuncture sessions and Alexander Technique lessons both led to significant reductions in neck pain and associated disability compared with usual care at 12 months. Enhanced self-efficacy may partially explain why longer-term benefits were sustained. Arthritis Research UK. |
X Demographics
The data shown below were collected from the profiles of 74 X users who shared this research output. Click here to find out more about how the information was compiled.
Geographical breakdown
| Country | Count | As % |
|---|---|---|
| United States | 23 | 31% |
| United Kingdom | 8 | 11% |
| Spain | 3 | 4% |
| France | 3 | 4% |
| Canada | 3 | 4% |
| Germany | 1 | 1% |
| Mexico | 1 | 1% |
| Australia | 1 | 1% |
| Denmark | 1 | 1% |
| Other | 6 | 8% |
| Unknown | 24 | 32% |
Demographic breakdown
| Type | Count | As % |
|---|---|---|
| Members of the public | 47 | 64% |
| Practitioners (doctors, other healthcare professionals) | 19 | 26% |
| Scientists | 7 | 9% |
| Science communicators (journalists, bloggers, editors) | 1 | 1% |
Mendeley readers
The data shown below were compiled from readership statistics for 198 Mendeley readers of this research output. Click here to see the associated Mendeley record.
Geographical breakdown
| Country | Count | As % |
|---|---|---|
| Germany | 1 | <1% |
| Unknown | 197 | 99% |
Demographic breakdown
| Readers by professional status | Count | As % |
|---|---|---|
| Student > Master | 26 | 13% |
| Student > Bachelor | 26 | 13% |
| Researcher | 17 | 9% |
| Other | 15 | 8% |
| Student > Ph. D. Student | 15 | 8% |
| Other | 46 | 23% |
| Unknown | 53 | 27% |
| Readers by discipline | Count | As % |
|---|---|---|
| Medicine and Dentistry | 44 | 22% |
| Nursing and Health Professions | 38 | 19% |
| Unspecified | 13 | 7% |
| Psychology | 8 | 4% |
| Social Sciences | 8 | 4% |
| Other | 28 | 14% |
| Unknown | 59 | 30% |
Attention Score in Context
This research output has an Altmetric Attention Score of 200. This is our high-level measure of the quality and quantity of online attention that it has received. This Attention Score, as well as the ranking and number of research outputs shown below, was calculated when the research output was last mentioned on 06 April 2021.
All research outputs
#199,955
of 25,698,912 outputs
Outputs from ACP Journal Club
#874
of 13,109 outputs
Outputs of similar age
#2,665
of 297,206 outputs
Outputs of similar age from ACP Journal Club
#13
of 146 outputs
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