Abstract
IntroductionFatigue is a common and disabling problem in patients with Parkinson's disease (PD), and there is currently no satisfactory treatment. As acupuncture has been reported to be effective in fatigue related to other conditions, we sought to evaluate its efficacy in PD.MethodsThis was a single center, randomized, sham‐controlled study. Forty PD patients with moderately severe fatigue were randomized to receive 5 weeks of biweekly real or sham acupuncture. The primary outcome was change on the General Fatigue score of the Multidimensional Fatigue Inventory (MFI‐GF) at 5 weeks. Secondary outcomes included MFI‐Total score, Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale Motor score (UPDRS Motor), Parkinson's Disease Questionnaire‐39 (PDQ 39), Geriatrics Depression Scale (GDS), and Epworth Sleepiness Scale ESS). All outcome measures were evaluated at baseline, 5 and 9 weeks.ResultsBoth groups showed significant improvements in MFI‐GF and MFI‐Total scores at 5 and 9 weeks, but there were no significant between‐group differences. There were no improvements from baseline for PDQ 39, GDS, and ESS. Although improvements were noted for the UPDRS Motor score in the real acupuncture group, no between‐group difference could be demonstrated.ConclusionsBoth real and sham acupuncture are equally effective in improving PD‐related fatigue, and it is likely that this is due to nonspecific or placebo effects.
Highlights
| INTRODUCTIONFatigue is one of the commonest nonmotor symptoms in Parkinson’s disease (PD) and has negative impact on quality of life (Barone et al, 2009; Friedman, Abrantes, & Sweet, 2011; Skorvanek et al, 2013)
Fatigue is a common and disabling problem in patients with Parkinson’s disease (PD), and there is currently no satisfactory treatment
The inclusion criteria were (1) diagnosis of PD based on criteria developed by Gelb, Oliver, & Gilman (1999) which is adopted by the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, US National Institute of Health, (2) age 21–85 years old, (3) presence of moderately severe fatigue as defined by a score of ≥10 on the General Fatigue domain of the Multidimensional Fatigue Inventory (Smets, Grasen, Bonke, & De Haes, 1995), and (4) no acupuncture treatment in the past 6 months
Summary
Fatigue is one of the commonest nonmotor symptoms in Parkinson’s disease (PD) and has negative impact on quality of life (Barone et al, 2009; Friedman, Abrantes, & Sweet, 2011; Skorvanek et al, 2013). Acupuncture has been shown to be effective in the treatment of fatigue related to other conditions, in particular, cancer-related fatigue (Molassiotis et al, 2012; Sood, Barton, Bauer, & Loprinzi, 2007). Apart from a recent study (Kluger et al, 2016) its role in PD-related fatigue. The aim of this randomized, controlled pilot study was to evaluate the efficacy of a 5-week course of acupuncture in the treatment of fatigue in PD
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