Efficacy of acupuncture for chronic prostatitis/chronic pelvic pain syndrome among men with a sedentary lifestyle: secondary analysis of a randomized controlled trial

Background: Acupuncture was shown to be efficacious for chronic prostatitis/chronic pelvic pain syndrome (CP/CPPS) in a prior randomized controlled trial (RCT). The purpose of this secondary analysis was to evaluate the efficacy of acupuncture in the subgroup of CP/CPPS patients with a sedentary lifestyle and to compare outcomes between sedentary and non-sedentary participants in the group receiving acupuncture. Methods: In the original RCT, 440 patients with moderate to severe CP/CPPS received 20 sessions of acupuncture or sham acupuncture (SA) over 8 weeks and were followed up for 24 weeks after the treatment was completed. The primary outcome was the proportion of sustained responders, defined as those with a reduction of at least six points in the National Institute of Health—chronic prostatitis symptom index (NIH-CPSI) total score at weeks 8, 20 and 32. In this secondary analysis, we compared n = 147 participants in the acupuncture group with a sedentary lifestyle group: (1) n = 148 participants with a sedentary lifestyle in the SA group ; and (2) n = 62 participants with a non-sedentary lifestyle in the acupuncture group. Results: Among those with a sedentary lifestyle, the proportion of sustained responders was 38.3% in the acupuncture group versus 20.1% in the SA group (odds ratio (OR) 2.52 [95% confidence interval (CI) 1.45–4.10]; P = 0.001). However, among those receiving verum acupuncture, response rates were higher in non-sedentary compared with sedentary participants at 56.9% vs 38.3% (OR 1.32 [95% CI 1.19– 3.49]; P = 0.044). Conclusion: Acupuncture appears to be an efficacious for the treatment of CP/CPPS patients with a sedentary lifestyle. However, compared with a non-sedentary population, sedentary patients are less likely to achieve a significant/sustained treatment response following acupuncture.