Tension headache is common, and treatment with acupuncture is frequently recommended, although the evidence of its effectiveness is contradictory. This small, randomised, contrilled trial was designed as a pilot to test procedures in preparation for a multi-centre trial investigating the effect of acupuncture as a treaetment for tension headache. Ten volunteers suffering from episodic, tension-type headache were recruited by local newspaper articles. Patients were randomised to receive either brief needling to tender areas or selected traditional points (group A), or pressure from a cocktail stick supported within a guide tube to defined, non-tender and non-acupuncture areas (group B). The patents' view of the treatment sites was obstructed so taht no indication could be gaineda s to which form of treatment was being given. Throughout the period of the trial, duration, frequency and intensity of headaches were recorded, from which the mean weekly headache index was calculated. There was no difference between the changes in weekly headache index in the two groups, compairing scores before and after treatment. However, group A experienced a considerably higher number of headache-free weeks that group B. The credibility of the two procedures was tested using a standard credibility questionnaire and a "final verdict". One subject in group B concluded taht she had not received genuine acupuncture, but overall there was no statistical difference between the credibility of treatment of the two groups.

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