Abstract
Seventy-eight dogs with pain from hip dysplasia participated in a six-month placebo-controlled, double-blinded clinical trial of gold bead implantation. In the present, non-blinded study, 73 of these dogs were followed for an additional 18 months to evaluate the long-term pain-relieving effect of gold bead implantation. The recently-published results of the six month period revealed that 30 of the 36 dogs (83%) in the gold implantation group showed significant improvement (p = 0.02), included improved mobility and reduction in the signs of pain, compared to the placebo group (60% improvement).In the long-term two-year follow-up study, 66 of the 73 dogs had gold implantation and seven dogs continued as a control group. The 32 dogs in the original placebo group had gold beads implanted and were followed for a further 18 months. A certified veterinary acupuncturist used the same procedure to insert the gold beads as in the blinded study, and the owners completed the same type of detailed questionnaires. As in the blinded study, one investigator was responsible for all the assessments of each dog. The present study revealed that the pain-relieving effect of gold bead implantation observed in the blinded study continued throughout the two-year follow-up period.
Highlights
Hip-joint arthritis, mostly from canine hip dysplasia (CHD), is a common, non-curable and painful disease amongst medium and large breed dogs [1,2,3,4] and therapy is palliative at best [5].Implantation of gold beads in both humans and animals with arthritis was first attempted by veterinary traditional acupuncturists [6]
The total reduction in mean pain score was in the gold group 65% compared to 36% in the placebo group (p < 0.01)
The aim of the present study was to evaluate whether the significant improvement that we found after six months was still present 24 months after gold bead implantation
Summary
Hip-joint arthritis, mostly from canine hip dysplasia (CHD), is a common, non-curable and painful disease amongst medium and large breed dogs [1,2,3,4] and therapy is palliative at best [5].Implantation of gold beads in both humans and animals with arthritis was first attempted by veterinary traditional acupuncturists [6]. Other researchers [7,8] who implanted gold beads in dogs, observed no clinical effect after sixand three-months study periods. In a recent paper we revealed that gold bead implantation had a significant pain-relieving effect in a six months controlled, double-blinded clinical trial [9]. The initial mean pain scores in the gold-bead implantation and control groups were 5.6 and 4.8, respectively, where 0 was no pain and 10 was extreme pain. No further reduction had taken place in the control group, while a significant further reduction in mean pain score (to 1.9) was found in the gold group. The total reduction in mean pain score was in the gold group 65% compared to 36% in the placebo group (p < 0.01). Each dog's overall response, according to its owner's impres-
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