Survey on Adverse Events of Acupuncture and Moxibustion for Athletes in Japan

Hideki Fujimoto; Yasuhisa Kaneko; Shigeki Izumi; Hinata Sakuraba; Yukihiro Yoshida; Takashi Toriumi; Sachiko Ikemune; Masanori Tamachi; Naruto Yoshida; Hiroshi Kondo; Eiji Furuya

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Survey on Adverse Events of Acupuncture and Moxibustion for Athletes in Japan

VernacularTitle:スポーツ選手を対象とした鍼灸治療の有害事象調査
Author: Hideki FUJIMOTO ¹ ; Yasuhisa KANEKO ² ; Shigeki IZUMI ³ ; Hinata SAKURABA ² ; Yukihiro YOSHIDA ⁴ ; Takashi TORIUMI ² ; Sachiko IKEMUNE ⁵ ; Masanori TAMACHI ² ; Naruto YOSHIDA ⁶ ; Hiroshi KONDO ² ; Eiji FURUYA ⁷
Author Information

1. Faculty of Health Sciences, Tokyo Ariake University of Medical and Health Sciences
2. Japan Society of Acupuncture and Moxibustion, Sports Acupuncture and Moxibution Committee
3. Oriental Medicine Clinical Institute, Kuretake College of Medical Arts and Sciences
4. Faculty of Sports and Health Studies, Hosei University
5. Faculty of Health Science, Tsukuba University of Technology
6. Faculty of Acupuncture and Moxibustion, Meiji University of Integrative Medicine
7. Tokyo College of Medical Sports
Keywords: sports; acupuncture and moxibustion; adverse events; safety; questionnaire survey
From:Journal of the Japan Society of Acupuncture and Moxibustion 2020;70(1):14-25
CountryJapan
Language:Japanese
Abstract: [Objective] The purpose of this cross-sectional questionnaire-based study is to investigate the challenges of adverse events during treatment by acupuncture and moxibustion to an athlete. [Methods] In total, 1,804 subjects, including athletes who participated in marathons and university athletes were enrolled in this study. The survey was conducted by distributing the questionnaire or via online questionnaire to the athletes who fit the criteria for the study. The questionnaires were collected after consent was received from the participants; online questionnaires were also collected. The questionnaire was examined for age, sex, and type of competition, purpose of the acupuncture treatment and the actual effects, and treated area, content of adverse event, number of times the subjects received acupuncture, and informed consent, and free description of adverse events.[Results] In total, 1,525 (84.5%) valid responses to the questionnaires were received. The survey analyzed 841 subjects (55.1%) who experienced acupuncture and moxibustion. The following responses about adverse events of acupuncture were obtained: "pain at time of needle insertion"; 17.0%, "subcutaneous-bleeding"; 10.1% and "pain and feeling of heaviness due to the needle": 10.0%, among others. For moxibustion, responses included "burns"; 5.9% and "malaise"; 5.8%, among others. In the free description, there were 17 descriptions of discomfort due to excessive stimulation and difficulty in movement during exercise. Of the questions regarding whether or not they received informed consent, 215 were received orally (25.6%), 34 were received in written form (4.0%), 99 were received both orally and in written form (11.8%).[Discussion and Conclusion] Acupuncture for athletes causes a certain rate of adverse events. It was suggested that guidelines for athletes to receive acupuncture safely and training and education for practitioners are important.