The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence has published support for the use of both traditional Chinese and Western acupuncture for chronic primary pain. Chronic primary pain is defined by NICE as pain for which no underlying condition adequately accounts for the pain or its impact.
In November 2016, NICE did not support acupuncture for the treatment of low back pain. Their view was that there was no evidence that it was better than sham treatment. (https://www.nice.org.uk/news/article/nice-publishes-updated-advice-on-treating-low-back-pain ) This surprising stance was objectionable not only to acupuncture practitioners but also to Western medical doctors. Even the British Medical Journal questioned the recommendation. (https://www.bmj.com/content/356/bmj.i6748/rr-3)
Yesterday, April 7, however, NICE published guidelines recommending the use of acupuncture for chronic pain:
