Single-blinded, randomised preliminary study evaluating the effects of 2 Hz electroacupuncture for postoperative pain in patients with total knee arthroplasty

47 patients with severe degenerative knee-joint arthritis undergoing total knee arthroplasty (TKA) were randomly assigned to one of the following three groups: a control group not receiving electroacupuncture (EA), a group receiving point-specific electroacupuncture, or a group receiving non-point specific electroacupuncture following surgery. The purpose of this RCT was to investigate the effect of electroacupuncture on postoperative patient-controlled analgesia use. The results indicate that the use of electroacupuncture following surgery, either as point specific or non-point specific, significantly increased the time to first PCA administration, but did not elicit any significant effect on dose of PCA administered or incidence of vomiting over the first 48 hours postoperatively.