References
neck/shoulder stiffness
Three types of acupuncture needles for double blinding. (Trial flow diagram.Changes in stiffness over time for the four treatments. The intensity of neck/shoulder stiffness was assessed using a 100 mm visual analogue scale (VAS). The top, middle, and bottom lines of the boxes correspond to the 75th, 50th, and 25th percentiles, respectively. The whiskers extend from 10th to the 90th percentile. The circles indicate the mean scores. * Confidence in practitioners’ guesses for each type of needle (except ‘cannot identify’). The top, middle, and bottom lines of the boxes correspond to the 75th, 50th, and 25th percentiles, respectively. The whiskers extend from the 10th to the 90th percentile. The circles indicate the mean scores.Confidence in patients’ guesses for each type of needle (except ‘cannot identify’). The top, middle, and bottom lines of the boxes correspond to the 75th, 50th, and 25th percentiles, respectively. The whiskers extend from 10th to the 90th percentile. The circles indicate the mean scores.Baseline characteristics.* Note: Number of participants’ guesses to treatment.* 