Efficacy of Acupuncture versus Combined Oral Contraceptive Pill in Treatment of Moderate-to-Severe Dysmenorrhea: A Randomized Controlled Trial
Table 2
Baseline characteristics of the study population in the acupuncture (ACU) and the combined oral contraceptive (COC) groups.
Variable
ACU
COC
value
()
()
Mean (SD)
Age (years)
24.15 (6.0)
26.48 (4.4)
0.119
Age at menarche (years)
12.70 (1.5)
13.32 (1.2)
0.110
Duration of dysmenorrhea (years)
14.96 (3.3)
15.76 (2.7)
0.350
Number of dysmenorrhea days per cycle (days)
2.96 (1.4)
3.16 (1.4)
0.615
Maximal dysmenorrhea pain scores (NRS)
8.33 (1.5)
7.92 (1.4)
0.297
Rescue analgesic use (tablets per menstrual cycle)
4.07 (3.1)
4.00 (3.4)
0.934
Quality of life (SF-36) (score points)
85.30 (13.2)
91.72 (16.8)
0.130
(percent)
Ability to work
0.693
Unaffected
0
1 (4.00)
Rarely affected
5 (18.52)
5 (20.00)
Moderately affected
12 (44.44)
12 (48.00)
Significantly affected
10 (37.04)
7 (28.00)
Associated symptoms
None
0
2 (8.00)
0.134
Nausea
11 (40.74)
5 (20.00)
0.105
Vomiting
5 (18.52)
1 (4.00)
0.102
Headache
17 (62.96)
8 (32.00)
0.026
Diarrhea
8 (29.63)
10 (40.00)
0.432
Fatigue
23 (85.19)
16 (64.00)
0.078
Fever
3 (11.11)
1 (4.00)
0.336
Dizziness
10 (37.04)
7 (28.00)
0.488
Other
7 (25.93)
7 (28.00)
0.866
Verbal multidimensional scoring system (VMSS) grading
0.088
Grade 2
5 (18.52)
10 (40.00)
Grade 3
22 (81.48)
15 (60.00)
values are based on Student’s -test or chi-square test as appropriate. SD: standard deviation; : number of individuals: NRS: numeric rating scale (0 to 10); SF-36: Short Form Health Survey.
