For men with moderate-to-severe chronic prostatitis/chronic pelvic pain syndrome (CP/CPPS), 20 sessions of acupuncture results in greater improvement of symptoms than sham acupuncture, according to a study published online Aug. 17 in the Annals of Internal Medicine.

Yuanjie Sun, M.D., from Guang'anmen Hospital at the China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences in Beijing, and colleagues examined the long-term efficacy of acupuncture for CP/CPPS in a multicenter, randomized, sham-controlled trial conducted at 10 tertiary hospitals in China. A total of 440 men with moderate-to-severe CP/CPPS were randomly assigned to 20 sessions of either acupuncture or sham acupuncture over eight weeks, and followed up for 24 weeks.

The researchers found that the proportion of responders was 60.6 and 36.8 percent at week 8 in the acupuncture and sham acupuncture groups, respectively (adjusted odds ratio, 2.6). The corresponding proportions were 61.5 and 38.3 percent, respectively, at 32 weeks (adjusted odds ratio, 2.6). There were 20 and 14 adverse events (9.1 and 6.4 percent) reported in the acupuncture and sham acupuncture groups, respectively, but no reports of serious adverse events.

"Eight weeks of acupuncture may result in clinically important improvements in symptoms of moderate-to-severe CP/CPPS, with durable efficacy for at least 24 weeks after treatment," the authors write. "This trial showed long-term efficacy of acupuncture and provides high-quality evidence for clinical practice and guideline recommendations."