Trial reportPloS one2025
Participant experiences receiving acupuncture for acute musculoskeletal pain in an emergency department: A qualitative evaluation.
Trial report in PloS one, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to trial NCT04290741 (Emergency Department Acupuncture for Acute Musculoskeletal Pain Management), which is not on this map. Cited by 3 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Emergency Department Acupuncture for Acute Musculoskeletal Pain Management
Who cites it
3 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.
- Core acupoint selection strategies and multifactorial analysis for acute musculoskeletal pain.Frontiers in medicine · 2026Pooled it
- Review
- Therapeutic mechanisms of acupuncture therapy for acute pain in the emergency department.Integrative medicine research · 2026Review
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
11 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
objectiveAcupuncture is an evidence-based pain treatment in clinic settings, but its optimal delivery has not been established in emergency departments (EDs). As part of an adaptive pragmatic randomized controlled trial of ED acupuncture for acute musculoskeletal pain (NCT04290741), we embedded a qualitative evaluation of acupuncture treatment acceptability and suggestions for improvement from study participants receiving acupuncture in the ED.
methodsSemi-structured interviews conducted remotely evaluated factors impacting patients' perspectives, willingness to participate in, and experiences with ED acupuncture. The codebook was iteratively developed, and recruitment and analysis continued until information saturation was reached.
resultsTwenty-eight participants receiving ED acupuncture between February 2020-March 2021 were interviewed, with median age 44 years, 46.4% female, and 61% having never previously received acupuncture. Overall, ED patients with acute musculoskeletal pain expressed interest in acupuncture and reported an overall positive experience. Most reported acupuncture met their expectations for pain improvement, and many reported additional improvements in stress, anxiety, and sleep quality. Participants with a positive experience were more likely to recommend acupuncture to others. Key positive aspects included open communication with compassionate and knowledgeable acupuncturists. Participants found the ED setting acceptable and convenient for receiving acupuncture. Furthermore, participants provided actionable feedback like addressing fear of needles to improve the ED acupuncture experience.
conclusionsIn conclusion, ED patients with acute musculoskeletal pain were interested in and had positive experiences with acupuncture treatment for pain and found the ED setting acceptable and convenient. Participant feedback can be used to improve acupuncture treatment in the ED.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.