Back pain is one of the most common reasons people seek medical help — and it’s also one of the most frustrating to treat. If you’ve tried everything from painkillers to physio with little lasting relief, you’re not alone.
A major new systematic review published in the BMJ in March 2025 has taken a deep dive into 56 different treatments for lower back pain — and the results have got people talking.
What Did the Research Find?
The review examined therapies for both acute (short-term) and chronic (long-term) lower back pain. Shockingly, only a handful of treatments were found to offer even slight or small reductions in pain. These included:
• NSAIDs (like ibuprofen)
• Spinal manipulative therapy
• Taping
• Antidepressants
• TRPV1 (capsaicin) therapies
Among the better-performing therapies? Acupuncture.
The authors found that while the overall certainty of evidence for acupuncture was considered “low,” it may lead to moderate reductions in pain for both acute and chronic cases — a better result than most treatments assessed.
Reference:
Cashin AG et al. (2025) “Efficacy of treatments for non-specific low back pain: a systematic review and network meta-analysis.” BMJ, 380:e075191.
Read the full paper here
Acupuncture, Cupping & Heat – A Traditional Combo with Evidence
The same review also highlighted cupping and heat-based treatments as offering additional benefit, with small to moderate reductions in pain. Both of these therapies are regularly used by traditional acupuncturists to enhance the therapeutic effect.
As the British Acupuncture Council (BAcC) noted in their response, acupuncture performed in clinical trials often uses a placebo approach that still stimulates the body — meaning the true effectiveness of real acupuncture could be underestimated.
They also point to another landmark study:
Vickers AJ et al. (2018) – an individual patient data meta-analysis of nearly 20,000 participants across 39 high-quality trials, which concluded that acupuncture is more than just placebo and provides clinically relevant pain relief for chronic pain conditions, including back pain.
Reference:
Vickers AJ et al. (2018) “Acupuncture for Chronic Pain: Update of an Individual Patient Data Meta-Analysis.” The Journal of Pain, 19(5), 455–474.
Read the study here
Acupuncture at Joint Health Space
At Joint Health Space in Mansfield, we offer traditional acupuncture delivered by Sally Kennedy, a degree-qualified Acupuncturist and Chartered Physiotherapist with over 20 years of experience in pain management.
Sally regularly combines acupuncture with cupping, moxibustion (heat therapy), and a deep understanding of musculoskeletal pain — exactly the kind of personalised care highlighted in this research.
And remember: acupuncture is already recommended by NICE guidelines for managing chronic primary pain.
Is Acupuncture Right for You?
If you’re struggling with lower back pain and feel like you’ve tried everything, acupuncture could offer a new path forward — naturally, holistically, and with research to support it.
