Our Research
The Center for Integrative Medicine is conducting two research studies funded by the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine:
- Evaluating the benefits of prolotherapy for tennis elbow.
Prolotherapy is a technique for treating chronic pain around joints and ligaments. It involves injecting small amounts of a sugar solution into those areas. These injections stimulate the body to repair the painful area.
Prolotherapy Research Study (PDF)
- Investigating the effect of acupuncture for individuals with insomnia. Acupuncture has shown a dramatic benefit for the treatment of insomnia in studies published in the literature of traditional Chinese medicine, and this clinical trial will subject this approach to more rigorous design methods.
The UPMC Center for Integrative Medicine is dedicated to increasing knowledge about the effectiveness and safety of complementary and integrative medicine approaches. Other integrative medicine modalities may not have been subjected to the same level of scientific inquiry as western medicine treatments. The Center for Integrative Medicine, in concert with the University of Pittsburgh, is actively pursuing research to support the benefits of these therapies.
In addition to our investigations about the use of acupuncture and prolotherapy, our areas of research, ongoing or in development, include mind-body approaches such as meditation. These studies and the research mission of the center are supported by local pilot funds, the National Institutes of Health, and philanthropic donations.