Singapore: A team of researchers at the University of Southampton conducted a study of the traditional Chinese medical practice of acupuncture and was successfully able to prove the significant role that the technique played in the field of pain management.

The team in Southampton, led by Professor George Lewith, looked at a host of cases of back pain, neck pain and joint pain in a bid to assess the efficacy of this popular alternative treatment.

The results of the study made positive reading for clinics such as Fitzwilliam Health Clinic. The patients who were treated using acupuncture to supplement other techniques tended to find that their pain was eased alleviated more effectively than that of patients who received no acupuncture alongside their usual pain management regimes.

One of the drawbacks for acupuncture tends to be a widespread sense of scepticism about whether it has the desired effect. However, Professor Lewith, who took charge of the study at the University of Southampton, stated that, "Acupuncture is a treatment that is not readily recommended by clinicians but these results will confirm that the effects of acupuncture are beneficial."