Needles of 0.25 mm in diameter and 30 mm in
length (Zhongyan Taihe Medical Instruments, Beijing,
China) were used in this study for both MA and EA
treatments and were inserted to a depth of 0.5 cm. All
patients were treated lying in a supine position on a
couch. EA treatment consisted of placing the acupuncture
needles at specific treatment points and an electrical
stimulator was then connected to the needles
with alligator clips. The stimulus intensity was
increased until the patient reported a strong but comfortable
intensity. A Sikuro DS100C electrical stimulator
with the following parameters was used: signal
three with two frequencies, 3 Hz (with pulse duration
of 1 ms) and 100 Hz (with pulse duration of
0.88 ms), both with a 3 s duration for 30 min.18 For
treatment with MA, the acupuncture needles were
placed at the same specific treatment points and then
the manipulation technique was used every 3 min for
a total of 30 min. The points used in both the treatments
were LI4 Hegu and LR3 Taichong bilaterally,
and ST36 Zusanli, ST35 Dubai, Xiyan and SP10
Xuehai on the most painful side.29
The patients were reassessed after the treatment by
the examiner, who was blind to the group allocation,
using the same instruments as those used in the pretreatment
assessment.