The analgesic effect of electroacupuncture was compared to that of placebo electroacupuncture and low frequency high intensity transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation in 14 patients with chronic non-cancer pain. Patients underwent six randomly assigned treatment sessions, each lasting 20 minutes, at least 48 hours apart: two sessions of classical electroacupuncture, two sessions of placebo electroacupuncture using non-acupuncture points, and two sessions using surface electrodes placed over painful sites. For all sessions, current was set just above pain threshold, at a pulse width of 200 msec and a rate of 2 Hz. Pain ratings were determined before and immediately after stimulation and at intervals during the subsequent 48 hours. Five of the 14 patients demonstrated significant improvement in pain with all three types of stimulation. There was no significant difference in the degree or duration of analgesia achieved among the three modalities, suggesting that classical acupuncture is no more effective than other forms of low frequency high intensity stimulation.

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