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Real-World Study of Acupuncture for Pain Control
Sponsor: Qi's Clinic
Summary
The goal of this observational study is to evaluate the real-world effectiveness of an acupuncture-first stepped care pathway for pain management in adults aged 18 years and older receiving routine outpatient clinical care for non-cancer-related pain conditions. The primary purpose is to describe episode-based clinical outcomes and care utilization patterns as they occur in standard practice. The main questions it aims to answer are: * What proportion of completed pain episodes achieve a clinically meaningful improvement, defined as a ≥50% reduction in pain intensity (Numeric Rating Scale or Visual Analog Scale) within an episode treatment window of up to 8 acupuncture visits? * What are the visit utilization patterns, time to clinically meaningful improvement, and care escalation patterns within an acupuncture-first stepped care pathway in routine outpatient practice? There is no comparison group. This study does not introduce or test a new intervention. All care is delivered as part of standard clinical practice. Participants will: * Receive acupuncture treatment as part of routine outpatient care * Undergo routine pain assessments (NRS/VAS) at each clinical visit * Participate in standard clinical follow-up as determined by usual care practices No additional research-specific visits, procedures, questionnaires, or interventions are introduced. Data analyzed in this study are derived from routine clinical documentation systems and are de-identified prior to analysis.
Official title: Qi's Clinic, Real-World Effectiveness of an Acupuncture-First Stepped Care Pathway for Pain Management: An Episode-Based Observational Study in Routine Outpatient Clinical Practice Supported by an ES-Enabled Clinical System
Key Details
Gender
All
Age Range
18 Years - Any
Study Type
OBSERVATIONAL
Enrollment
300
Start Date
2026-03-21
Completion Date
2027-09-21
Last Updated
2026-03-06
Healthy Volunteers
No
Interventions
Acupuncture-First Stepped Care Pathway (Routine Clinical Care)
This study does not assign or manipulate any intervention. Participants receive routine outpatient acupuncture care delivered within an existing acupuncture-first stepped care pathway. The pathway represents standard clinical practice and includes individualized acupuncture treatment decisions made by the treating practitioner. Treatment frequency, duration (up to 8 visits per episode), and potential care escalation are determined solely by routine clinical judgment and patient response. The study does not introduce additional procedures, randomization, comparison groups, or protocol-driven treatment modifications. Data are analyzed observationally from routine clinical documentation.