Acupuncture is a traditional Chinese medicine that been viewed with suspicion in the west. Many Chinese doctors regard acupuncture as an effective treatment for various illnesses such as stroke. Recently. scientific studies of the effects of acupuncture have begun in China and almost all trials as a treatment for stroke have been positive. Another study from the UK showed that several other countries had found positive results too. The Cochrane Collaboration, an international non-profit organization conducted a review of the benefits of acupuncture. They found that those who received treatment within 30 days of suffering a stroke were much more likely to make a positive recovery than those who were not treated. "Sham' acupuncture was also conducted and it was found that the differences between this and "real acupuncture were small. This may be because of the placebo effect whereby patients believe in the treatment and positive effects are experienced.