---
title: Does acupuncture treat PMS symptoms? | Niyora
description: Acupuncture may help PMS symptoms. 77.8% of women in the acupuncture group improved, compared to 5.9% in the placebo group.
url: https://niyora.com/research/papers/using-acupuncture-to-treat-premenstrual-syndrome-2002/
---

- [Niyora](https://niyora.com/)
- [Research](https://niyora.com/research/)
- [Library](https://niyora.com/research/library/)
- Does acupuncture treat PMS symptoms?

Randomised trial, 2002

# Does acupuncture treat PMS symptoms?

Acupuncture may help PMS symptoms. 77.8% of women in the acupuncture group improved, compared to 5.9% in the placebo group.

 Early or limited evidence

Women with PMS (small study, approximately 16 women total)

## What they did

Two groups of women with PMS: one received acupuncture treatments (up to four sessions), the other received placebo. Neither group nor doctors knew which was which.

## What they found

In the acupuncture group, 9 women improved after 2 treatments, 8 after 3 treatments, and 1 after 4 treatments. Overall 77.8% improved with acupuncture versus 5.9% with placebo. One woman had a small bruise at the needle site.

## What it means for you

Acupuncture may reduce PMS symptoms for many women. The study was small and we don't fully understand how acupuncture works for PMS. The side effects were minimal.

77.8%

improved with acupuncture

5.9%

improved with placebo

4

maximum acupuncture sessions

## About the study

Original title Using acupuncture to treat premenstrual syndrome Authors Habek D, Habek JC, Barbir A Journal Archives of gynecology and obstetrics Year 2002 Study design Randomised trial Participants 16 What was tested Acupuncture treatment, up to four sessions Read the paper [doi.org/10.1007/s00404-001-0270-7](https://doi.org/10.1007/s00404-001-0270-7)

## Topics

[Premenstrual syndrome (PMS)](https://niyora.com/research/topics/condition-pms/)[Pain and headache](https://niyora.com/research/topics/symptom-pain/)[SSRIs and antidepressants](https://niyora.com/research/topics/treatment-ssri/)[Acupuncture and acupressure](https://niyora.com/research/topics/treatment-acupuncture/)[Migraine](https://niyora.com/research/topics/comorbidity-migraine/)

Research tells you what helps on average. Niyora helps on the day it hits.

Calm down, see it another way, and decide what to say, with a PMS and PMDD app built by a doctor.

## Related studies

Review, 2002

Do antidepressants help with PMDD symptoms?

Interview study, 1996

Do antidepressants help treat PMDD and similar conditions?

Systematic review, 2024

What are the best treatments for PMDD and PMS?

Systematic review, 2023

What hormonal treatments have been tested for PMDD, menstrual migraine, and catamenial epilepsy?

Systematic review, 2022

What are the best treatments for PMDD and PMS?

Cohort study, 2022

Can women accurately tell if they have period-related migraines, or do they need to track them?

Ask AI about this page

Copy prompt

ChatGPT

↗

Claude

↗

Perplexity

↗

Google AI Mode

↗

Grok

↗