Variable | No acupuncture (n = 58,899) | Acupuncture (n = 58,899) | Standardized mean difference | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
n | % | n | % | ||
Sex | |||||
 Female | 33,331 | 56.59 | 33,447 | 56.79 | 0.004 |
 Male | 25,568 | 43.41 | 25,452 | 43.21 |  |
Age group, years | |||||
 18–39 | 24,487 | 41.57 | 23,572 | 40.02 | 0.032 |
 40–59 | 27,481 | 46.66 | 29,748 | 50.51 | 0.077 |
 ≥60 | 6931 | 11.77 | 5579 | 9.47 | 0.075 |
 Mean (±SD), years | 44.57 (15.43) | 44.28 (14.44) | 0.02 | ||
Baseline comorbidities | |||||
 Diabetes mellitus | 6252 | 10.61 | 6098 | 10.35 | 0.009 |
 Hypertension | 12,457 | 21.15 | 12,036 | 20.43 | 0.018 |
 Hyperlipidemia | 10,097 | 17.14 | 10,034 | 17.04 | 0.003 |
 Congestive heart failure | 569 | 0.97 | 508 | 0.86 | 0.011 |
 Cerebrovascular diseases | 4044 | 6.87 | 3786 | 6.43 | 0.018 |
 Depression | 2863 | 4.86 | 2840 | 4.82 | 0.002 |
 Anxiety | 6551 | 11.12 | 6600 | 11.21 | 0.003 |
 Alcoholism or alcohol-related disorders | 311 | 0.53 | 316 | 0.54 | 0.001 |
 Tobacco dependence | 289 | 0.49 | 270 | 0.46 | 0.005 |
 Obesity | 439 | 0.75 | 427 | 0.72 | 0.002 |
Drugs used | |||||
 Oral steroids | 39466 | 67.01 | 39495 | 67.06 | 0.001 |
 NSAIDs | 57613 | 97.82 | 57734 | 98.02 | 0.014 |
 Statins | 7971 | 13.53 | 7937 | 13.48 | 0.002 |
Types of acupuncture | |||||
 Manual acupuncture of TCM type | – | – | 50,470 | 85.69 |  |
 Electroacupuncture | – | – | 2142 | 3.64 |  |
 Combination of manual acupuncture and electroacupuncture |  |  | 6287 | 10.67 |  |
Duration between the initial diagnosis to the first acupuncture treatment, days, mean (median) | – | 919 (574) |  | ||
Acupuncture visits, mean | – | 7.45 |  | ||
Follow-up duration, years, mean (median) | 3.60 (3.02) | 4.27 (3.79) | Â |