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Abstract #152565

Evelyn Y. Ho, PhD, Department of Communication Studies, University of San Francisco, 2130 Fulton Street, San Francisco, CA 94117, 415-422-6061, eyho@usfca.edu, Shawn P. Calhoun, MLIS, Gleeson Library/Geschke Learning Center, University of San Francisco, 2130 Fulton Street, San Francisco, CA 94117, Randi Kofsky, CMT, Randi Kofsky, CMT, 000, San Francisco, CA 94118, and Carla Wilson, MA, LAc, Complementary and Alternative Medicine Dept., Quan Yin Healing Arts Center, 455 Valencia Street, San Francisco, CA 94103.

Over 100 HIV-positive clients receive free and subsidized acupuncture and massage therapy treatment through a community-based holistic healing center in San Francisco. Twenty-four were recruited for a four-month study investigating the effects of acupuncture and massage therapy on HIV-related neuropathy symptoms and quality of life. All participants had already been using acupuncture and massage therapy to treat their peripheral neuropathy and had anecdotally reported benefits. The purpose of this study was to record patients' experiences with both acupuncture and massage therapy treatments over 10 treatments administered over a 16-week period to measure if and to what extent these treatments affect neuropathy symptoms and quality of life. In this study, participants first completed an opening focus group interview, individual interview and health status survey to provide baseline measurements. Second, participants completed 10 treatments (five each of acupuncture and massage therapy) with brief health status questionnaires for each treatment. Third, participants completed an identical closing focus group interview, individual interview, and health status survey. This study will present quantitative findings from the opening and closing health status surveys and the 10 treatment questionnaires in order to determine if treatments showed measurable efficacy. Based on qualitative analysis presented elsewhere, clients reported marked improvement in their neuropathy symptoms especially due to the regularity and availability of low/no-cost treatments.

Learning Objectives:

• Evaluate the utility of acupuncture and massage therapy as adjunct treatment for treating the symptoms of HIV-related neuropathy.
• Discuss the self-reported effects of regular treatment with acupuncture and massage therapy on neuropathy measures and overall quality of life for those living with HIV-related neuropathy.
• Develop a care plan to institute access to this type of treatment for low-income people with HIV-related neuropathy within a community-based setting.

Keywords: HIV/AIDS, Alternative Medicine/Therapies

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Any relevant financial relationships? No
Any institutionally-contracted trials related to this submission?

I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.