Efficacy of Electroacupuncture Compared With Topical Diclofenac Sodium Gel for Patients With Hand Osteoarthritis: A Randomized Controlled Trial.

If you live with hand osteoarthritis, you know how relentless the pain in your finger joints can be — making everyday tasks like opening a jar or typing feel nearly impossible. A new clinical trial published in Mayo Clinic Proceedings offers encouraging news: electroacupuncture may work better than a commonly used pain-relief gel at reducing that pain.

Researchers recruited 120 people with hand osteoarthritis and split them into two groups. One group received 12 electroacupuncture sessions over four weeks. Electroacupuncture is similar to traditional acupuncture, but small electrical currents are passed through the needles to enhance stimulation. The second group applied a prescription-strength diclofenac sodium gel — a standard anti-inflammatory treatment — to their hands four times a day for the same four weeks.

At the end of the four weeks, participants who received electroacupuncture reported significantly less finger joint pain than those using the gel. On a pain scale of 0 to 100, the electroacupuncture group scored around 29, compared to roughly 43 in the gel group — a meaningful difference of about 14 points. Even more impressive, the pain relief in the electroacupuncture group lasted well beyond the treatment period, with benefits still measurable 12 weeks after treatment ended.

Safety was also a strong point. Side effects in both groups were rare, mild, and short-lived, suggesting electroacupuncture is a well-tolerated option.

For patients who want to avoid long-term medication use, have sensitive skin, or simply haven't found enough relief from topical treatments, electroacupuncture could be a genuinely promising alternative. It's a non-drug approach that addresses pain in a way the body can sustain over time.

If you're considering electroacupuncture for hand osteoarthritis, seek care from a licensed acupuncturist with experience treating musculoskeletal conditions.

This randomized controlled trial (NCT04402047), published in Mayo Clinic Proceedings, evaluated 4-week electroacupuncture (EA) versus topical diclofenac sodium gel (DSG, 2 g QID) in 120 patients (n=60 per arm) with symptomatic hand osteoarthritis (HOA) of ≥3 months duration. The primary outcome was change in dominant-hand finger joint pain via VAS (0–100) at week 4. EA was delivered across 12 sessions over four weeks, followed by a 12-week observational follow-up.

At week 4, mean VAS scores were 28.72 (95% CI, 24.21–33.23) in the EA group versus 42.82 (95% CI, 38.32–47.33) in the DSG group (between-group difference: −14.11; 95% CI, −20.49 to −7.73; P<.001). Between-group differences favoring EA were maintained at weeks 8 and 16. Adverse events were infrequent, mild, and transient in both groups.

Clinical takeaway: EA demonstrates statistically and clinically significant superiority over topical NSAIDs for HOA pain reduction, with durable effects extending 12 weeks post-treatment — supporting its integration as a first-line nonpharmacologic intervention for this population.