Electroacupuncture for Poststroke Spasticity: Results of a Pilot Pragmatic Randomized Controlled Trial

People with spasticity that occurred between 30 days and one year after stroke onset with a baseline Modified Ashworth Scale (MAS) ≥1.

To determine the practicality of a pragmatic parallel-group open-labeled randomized controlled trial and to collect preliminary data of effectiveness and safety of electroacupuncture (EA) for poststroke spasticity.

Eligible participants were randomly allocated to the intervention group (EA plus usual care) or the control group (usual care alone) at a 1:1 ratio with block sizes of six. Participants received EA three times a week for four weeks, then were followed up for another four weeks. Participants' retention and adherence in the trial were assessed to determine the practicality of trial design. Clinical outcome measures were the change scores of MAS, Fugl-Meyer Assessment of motor performance and Barthel Index, and adverse events.

Seventy-two people were screened for eligibility, and 30 of them were recruited and randomized. At the end, 25 participants followed the trial protocol and were included in our final data analyses using an intention-to-treat approach. No significant between-group difference was detected for the change scores of MAS, Fugl-Meyer Assessment, or Barthel Index at the end of treatment or end of follow-up. Eighteen participants reported 37 adverse events, but none of the participants was deemed related to EA.

It is feasible to conduct a full-scale trial to precisely evaluate the effectiveness and safety of EA for treating poststroke spasticity; however, longer treatment and follow-up phases should be considered in the full-scale trial.