Turning Point: A Review of Key Research and Engagement in 2021

American Society of Acupuncturists and National Certification Commission for Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine. Conversations around racism, bias, equity and the acupuncture profession. Online document at: https://www.asacu.org/2020/08/conversations-around-racism-bias-equity-and-the-acupuncture-profession/, accessed September 30, 2021 .

Ho EY , Agne RR , Santana T , et al. A Communication Perspective on What Patient Advisory Boards Do: Action-Implicative Discourse Analysis and Negotiating Advice. J Gen Intern Med (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11606-021-07062-3

Nielsen A , Ocker L , Majd I , et al. Acupuncture intervention protocol: Consensus process for a pragmatic randomized controlled trial of acupuncture for management of chronic low back pain in older adults: An NIH HEAL initiative funded project. Glob Adv Health Med, 2021; 10:21649561211007091.

Mawla I , Ichesco E , Zollner HJ , et al. Greater somatosensory afference with acupuncture increases primary somatosensory connectivity and alleviates fibromyalgia pain via insular gamma-aminobutyric acid: A randomized neuroimaging trial. Arthritis Rheumatol, 2021; 73:1318–1328.

Ellingsen DM , Isenburg K , Jung C , et al. Dynamic brain-to-brain concordance and behavioral mirroring as a mechanism of the patient-clinician interaction. Sci Adv, 2020; 6.

MacPherson H , Hammerschlag R , Coeytaux RR , et al. Unanticipated insights into biomedicine from the study of acupuncture. J Altern Complement Med, 2016; 22:101–107.

Chen WG , Schloesser D , Arensdorf AM , et al. The emerging science of interoception: Sensing, integrating, interpreting, and regulating signals within the self. Trends Neurosci, 2021; 44:3–16.

Mao JJ , Liou KT , Baser RE , et al. Effectiveness of electroacupuncture or auricular acupuncture vs usual care for chronic musculoskeletal pain among cancer survivors: The PEACE randomized clinical trial. JAMA Oncol, 2021; 7:720–727.

Sun Y , Liu Y , Liu B , et al. Efficacy of acupuncture for chronic prostatitis/chronic pelvic pain syndrome: A randomized trial. Ann Intern Med, 2021; 174:1357–1366.

Baumler P , Zhang W , Stubinger T , Irnich D . Acupuncture-related adverse events: Systematic review and meta-analyses of prospective clinical studies. BMJ Open, 2021; 11:e045961.

Mu J , Furlan AD , Lam WY , et al. Acupuncture for chronic nonspecific low back pain. Cochrane Database Syst Rev, 2020; 12:CD013814.

Lee J , Napadow V , Kim J , et al. Phantom acupuncture: Dissociating somatosensory and cognitive/affective components of acupuncture stimulation with a novel form of placebo acupuncture. PLoS One, 2014; 9:e104582.

Hudnut F . Re: “Laser acupuncture: A concise review” by Chon et al. (Med Acupunt 2019;31:164–168). Med Acupunct, 2020; 32:51–52.

Yang J , Mallory MJ , Wu Q , et al. The safety of laser acupuncture: A systematic review. Med Acupunct, 2020; 32:209–217.

Loudon K , Treweek S , Sullivan F , et al. The PRECIS-2 tool: Designing trials that are fit for purpose. BMJ, 2015; 350:h2147.

McKee MD , Kligler B , Blank AE , et al. The ADDOPT study (acupuncture to decrease disparities in outcomes of pain treatment): Feasibility of offering acupuncture in the community health center setting. J Altern Complement Med, 2012; 18:839–843.

Blodt S , Pach D , Eisenhart-Rothe SV , et al. Effectiveness of app-based self-acupressure for women with menstrual pain compared to usual care: A randomized pragmatic trial. Am J Obstet Gynecol, 2018; 218:227 e221–e227 e229.

Hu W , Ying X , Sun J , et al. Self-administered acupressure for chronic severe functional constipation: A study protocol for a randomized controlled trial. Medicine (Baltimore), 2021; 100:e26349.

Zick SM , Kruger G , Harte S , et al. Acupressure for cancer-fatigue in ovarian cancer survivor (AcuOva) study: A community-based clinical trial study protocol examining the impact of self-acupressure on persistent cancer-related fatigue in ovarian cancer survivors. Contemp Clin Trials, 2021; 107:106477.

Chen IH , Yeh TP , Yeh YC , et al. Effects of acupressure on sleep quality and psychological distress in nursing home residents: A randomized controlled trial. J Am Med Dir Assoc, 2019; 20:822–829.

Kawi J , Yeh CH , Li M , et al. Auricular point acupressure smartphone application to manage chronic musculoskeletal pain: A longitudinal, one-group, open pilot trial. Glob Adv Health Med, 2021; 10:2164956120987531.

Peters DH , Adam T , Alonge O , et al. Implementation research: What it is and how to do it. BMJ, 2013; 347:f6753.

Ho EY , Thompson-Lastad A , Lam R , et al. Adaptations to acupuncture and pain counseling implementation in a multisite pragmatic randomized clinical trial. J Altern Complement Med, 2021; 27:398–406.

Miller DW , Roseen EJ , Stone JAM , et al. Incorporating acupuncture into American healthcare: initiating a discussion on implementation science, the status of the field, and stakeholder considerations. Glob Adv Health Med, 2021; 10:21649561211042574.

Lopez-Alcalde J , Yan Y , Witt CM , Barth J . Current state of research about Chinese Herbal Medicines (CHM) for the treatment of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19): A scoping review. J Altern Complement Med, 2020; 26:557–570.

Barth J , Canella C , Oehler M , Witt CM . Digital consultations during COVID-19: A multiperspective mixed-methods study in an integrative medicine setting in Switzerland. J Altern Complement Med, 2021; 27:569–578.

Taylor-Swanson L , Mitchell C , Hullender Rubin LE , Taromina K , Conboy L . (2020). COVID-19 trial for U.S. patients. The Lantern. Retrieved April 28, 2020, from https://www.thelantern.com.au/covid-19/.

Armour M , Betts D , Roberts K , et al. The role of research in guiding treatment for women's health: A qualitative study of traditional Chinese medicine acupuncturists. Int J Environ Res Public Health, 2021; 18:834.

The Common Fund. The drug overdose toll in 2020 and near-term actions for addressing it. Online document at: https://www.commonwealthfund.org/blog/2021/drug-overdose-toll-2020-and-near-term-actions-addressing-it Accessed October 1, 2021 .

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Provisional Drug Overdose Death Counts. Online document at: https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/nvss/vsrr/drug-overdose-data.htm Accessed October 1, 2021 .

Hawn SE , Cusack SE , Amstadter AB . A systematic review of the self-medication hypothesis in the context of posttraumatic stress disorder and comorbid problematic alcohol use. J Trauma Stress, 2020; 33:699–708.

Davis RT , Badger G , Valentine K , et al. Acupuncture for chronic pain in the vermont medicaid population: A prospective, pragmatic intervention trial. Glob Adv Health Med, 2018; 7:2164956118769557.

Li J , Sun M , Ye J , et al. The mechanism of acupuncture in treating essential hypertension: A narrative review. Int J Hypertens, 2019; 2019:8676490.

Wang SJ , Zhang JJ , Yang HY , et al. Acupoint specificity on acupuncture regulation of hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal cortex axis function. BMC Complement Altern Med, 2015; 15:87.

MacPherson H , Vickers A , Bland M , et al. Acupuncture for chronic pain and depression in primary care: A programme of research. University of Southampton Science Park, Southampton, United Kingdom, 2017.

Roseen EJ , Purtle J , Zhang W , et al. The intersection of dissemination research and acupuncture: Applications for chronic low back pain. Glob Adv Health Med, 2021; 10:2164956120980694.

Szmit M , Agrawal S , Gozdzik W , et al. Transcutaneous electrical acupoint stimulation reduces postoperative analgesic requirement in patients undergoing inguinal hernia repair: A randomized, placebo-controlled study. J Clin Med, 2021; 10.

Wen H , Wei X , Ge S , et al. Clinical and economic evaluation of acupuncture for opioid-dependent patients receiving methadone maintenance treatment: The integrative clinical trial and evidence-based data. Front Public Health, 2021; 9:689753.

Jackson HJ , Walters J , Raman R . Auricular acupuncture to facilitate outpatient opioid weaning: A randomized pilot study. Med Acupunct, 2021; 33:153–158.

Su X , Qian H , Chen B , et al. Acupuncture for acute low back pain: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Ann Palliat Med, 2021; 10:3924–3936.

Anderson BJ , Meissner P , Mah DM , et al. Barriers and facilitators to implementing bundled acupuncture and yoga therapy to treat chronic pain in community healthcare settings: A feasibility pilot. J Altern Complement Med, 2021; 27:496–505.

Nielsen A , Teets R , Moonaz S , et al. Group acupuncture therapy with yoga therapy for chronic neck, low back, and osteoarthritis pain in safety net setting for an underserved population: Design and rationale for a feasibility pilot. Glob Adv Health Med, 2020; 9:2164956120964716.

National Certification Commission for Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine. Diversity Equity and Inclusion (DEI) Statement. 2021. Online document at: https://www.nccaom.org/wp-content/uploads/pdf/NCCAOM%20DEI%20Statement%206-23-2021.pdf, accessed October 5, 2021 .

Ho EY , Leung G , Chao MT , et al. Integrative nutritional counseling combining Chinese medicine and biomedicine for Chinese Americans with type 2 diabetes: A mixed-methods feasibility study. J Altern Complement Med, 2021; 27:657–668.