Acupuncture Trial Protocol for Post-Stroke Vascular Vertigo

Lina Pang's study protocol outlines a multicenter, randomized, sham-controlled trial for post-stroke vascular vertigo, planning to enroll 234 patients across four subcenters. The trial compares acupuncture, sham acupuncture, and active drug groups over a 3-week treatment period with follow-ups at 8 and 20 weeks. Primary and secondary outcomes include the Dizziness Handicap Inventory (DHI), Dizziness and Anxiety Rating Scale (DARS), and multimodal magnetic resonance imaging (MRI).

Use Cases

• Analyze the Dizziness Handicap Inventory (DHI) scores across acupuncture, sham, and drug groups to assess treatment efficacy.
• Correlate Expectation Rating Scale (ERS) data with clinical outcomes to evaluate the placebo effect in vertigo treatment.
• Use multimodal magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) data to explore central nervous system mechanisms underlying acupuncture's effects.
• Track adverse event records from the 234-patient trial to compare the safety profiles of the three intervention methods.

Strengths

• Protocol for a randomized controlled trial with a defined sample size of 234 patients.
• Includes multiple clinical and mechanistic outcome measures such as DHI, DARS, SF-36, TCD, and MRI.
• Study design features a 1:1:1 randomization, a 3-week treatment period, and follow-ups at 8 and 20 weeks for longitudinal assessment.

Limitations

• Dataset is a 101.8 KB PDF protocol document, not the resulting trial data, limiting immediate analytical utility.
• The protocol describes planned data collection; actual patient outcomes and measurements are not yet available.
• Geographic scope is limited to four subcenters, which may affect the generalizability of future findings.

Provenance

Source

Lina Pang via figshare.

Collection Method

Study protocol for a planned multicenter, double-blind, randomized controlled trial.

Time Range

Trial includes a 1-week induction, 3-week treatment, and follow-ups at 8 and 20 weeks post-treatment.

Freshness

Protocol last updated on 2026-03-25.

Geography

Study planned across four subcenters; specific locations not detailed.