Health economic evaluation of acupuncture along meridians for treating migraine in China: results from a randomized controlled trial

Data were obtained from a multicenter, randomized controlled trial of acupuncture treatment in patients with migraine. Four-hundred eighty migraineurs were randomly assigned to 3 arms of treatment with genuine acupoints and 1 arm of penetrating sham acupoints. The primary outcome measurement was the cost-effectiveness ratio (C/E), expressed as cost per 1？day reduction of headache days from baseline to week 16. Cost-comparison analyses, differences in the migraine-specific quality of life questionnaire (MSQ), and the incremental cost-effectiveness ratio were taken as secondary outcome measurements. In addition, a sensitivity analysis was conducted.The total cost per patient was ￥1273.2 (95% CI 1171.3-1375.1) in the Shaoyang specific group, ￥1427.7 (95% CI 1311.8-1543.6) in the Shaoyang non-specific group, ￥1490.8 (95% CI 1327.1-1654.6) in the Yangming specific group, and ￥1470.1 (95% CI 1358.8-1581.3) in the sham acupuncture group. The reduced days with migraine were 3.972？±？2.7, 3.555？±？2.8, 3.793？±？3.6, and 2.155？±？3.7 in these 4 groups (P？<？0.05 for each genuine acupoints group vs the sham group), respectively, at week 16. The C/Es of the 4 groups were 320.5, 401.6, 393.1, and 682.2, respectively. Results of the sensitivity analysis were consistent with that of the cost-effectiveness analysis. The Shaoyang specific group significantly improved in all 3 MSQ domains compared with the sham acupuncture group.Treatment of specific acupoints in Shaoyang meridians is more cost-effective than that of non-acupoints, representing a dramatic improvement in the quality of life of people with migraine and a significant reduction in cost. Compared with the other 3 groups, Shaoyang-specific acupuncture is a relatively cost-effective treatment for migraine prophylaxis in China.Clinical Trials.gov NCT00599586