Epub: Foroughipour et al. Amantadine and the place of acupuncture in the treatment of fatigue in patients with multiple sclerosis: an observational study. Acupunct Med. 2012 Nov.
BACKGROUND: Fatigue is a common symptom in MSers. It has significant negative effects on the quality of life. There are few therapeutic modalities for fatigue, which are also usually not sufficiently effective. The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of acupuncture on this common symptom.
METHODS: In this before-and-after clinical trial, 40 patients with a definite diagnoses of MS, according to the ‘McDonald’ criteria, were studied. MSers who had Expanded Disability Status Scale (EDSS) scores greater than 4, or who had another disease that could be potentially responsible for their fatigue, were excluded from the study. In all, 20 MSers with fatigue refractory to amantadine underwent 12 sessions of acupuncture. Fatigue was scored according to the Fatigue Severity Scale (FSS).
RESULTS: A total of 15 (37.5%) MSers with fatigue responded to amantadine. The mean FSS score reduction after 2 months of treatment was 8±4, which was statistically significant (p<0.001). Of the 20 MSers who were resistant to amantadine, 5 (25%) responded to acupuncture combined with amantadine treatment. The FSS scores of the 20 MSers who were refractory were significantly reduced after this treatment (mean: 13±6, p<0.001).
CONCLUSIONS: Acupuncture appears to be associated with benefits for a proportion of MSers with fatigue who are resistant to conventional drugs such as amantadine.
Tried acupuncture not for fatigue but spasticity but no effect, on the contrary it left me tired and shaky. Some people claim it helps pain, but I am rather sceptical. It's overrated in my opinion and vastly over expensive.
It helps dissipate spasticity for me but agree with anon above in the immediate short term I often feel exhausted; however, over the next few days my fatigue usually eases … but perhaps this is related to the spasticity easing, which itself is quite fatiguing?
PS Amantadine was not of any aid when I tried it.
Amantadine did absolutely nothing for me. I've passed this on to a practitioner for her comments. I know that she swears by it for pain. Chinese Medicine is so distinctly different to Western medicine – even the concept of a 'mechanism of action' would be at odds with it's fundamental premises.