An interventional study of Acupuncture in Infant, Newborn, Diseases, Colic, Infantile and Acupuncture, sponsored by Region Skane. Withdrawn. Open to participants aged 2 Weeks to 9 Weeks. Per ClinicalTrials.gov, last updated 2026-02-17.
Sponsored by Region Skane · Not applicable, Interventional, and Treatment
About 10 per cent of all new born babies in Sweden have infant colic. This may affect the the whole family and the early connection between the baby and the parents. Although, there are no effective and safe treatment. Acupuncture is an environmental friendly method that affects pain, anxiety, sleep and the function of gastrointestinal system. Several studies have shown various results, and there are a need for high-qualitative randomised controlled trials to investigate the proposed effect further. 128 children will be randomised into two groups; acupuncture at LI4 or no acupuncture, parents will be blinded. Statistical calculations will be performed on the content of the diaries (bowel movement frequency, crying time, feeding). Registration of crying/crying in connection with acupuncture treatment, i.e. when the needle touches the skin or later until the needle is removed and 30 seconds after.
Among all newborn babies in Sweden, about 10% have infant colic. Currently, there is no effective and safe treatment for infant colic, while there is an increase in the use of complementary methods to reduce the infant's suffering. Infant colic is defined as "crying and whining more than three hours/day more than three days/week" and affects about 10% of all newborn babies, starting when the baby is about two weeks old and usually stopping at 3-4 months of age. A complementary method used against pain in the Western world is acupuncture, a treatment method with ancient roots in Asia. It involves thin needles being inserted at specific points on the body. The needle sticks stimulate neurotransmitters, and hormones are released in the central nervous system. Acupuncture is an environmentally friendly treatment with few side effects and promotes the inherent ability to self-heal. Acupuncture has been shown in several studies to be a safe and effective method that affects pain, anxiety, sleep, and the function of the gastrointestinal system. Studies have shown both shorter crying time with lower intensity. Therefore, there is a reasonableness in acupuncture being able to alleviate infant colic. However, systematic reviews have not been able to show significant differences in symptoms between children who received acupuncture and those who did not. The reviews also described that the studies used different points on the body for treatment and that the acupuncture needles remained for various lengths of time (5-30 seconds). This led to their conclusion that more high-quality randomised studies are needed to investigate the treatment method further. Purpose To examine the effect of minimal acupuncture at a single point (LI4) on infants with colic compared to no acupuncture. Method: The parents register the baby's crying, feeding, sleep and bowel movements in a diary (appendix 1) for seven consecutive days, constituting a baseline. According to the diary registration, the infants who have colic are included and come twice a week for three weeks to a nurse at a selected child health centre (BVC). The children will be randomised into two groups; acupuncture at LI4 or no acupuncture. The parents will not know which group the child belongs to. The parents will fill in the same diary type as the baseline during the two intervention weeks. Statistical calculations will be performed on the content of the diaries (bowel movement frequency, crying time, feeding). Registration of crying/crying in connection with acupuncture treatment, i.e. when the needle touches the skin or later until the needle is removed and 30 seconds after. This registration will also be done in the control group, where the handling of children is the same but without acupuncture. Expected result This study can provide further evidence on whether acupuncture is an effective treatment method for alleviating symptoms of infant colic, as well as further highlighting any experience of pain associated with treatment. The attitude towards complementary approaches among parents with infants showing colic symptoms will also be investigated.
127 studies on the registry are indexed under Colic; 18 are open to participants now.
Browse Colic studies →Region Skane is the lead sponsor of 386 studies on the registry; 122 are open to participants now.
Compared within Colic, this study's primary condition as ClinicalTrials.gg classifies it; the registry's first condition term is Infant, Newborn, Diseases. The counts are of registry records indexed under each term, refreshed daily. How we classify →
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The acupuncture nurse holds the child by the hand and speaks to it calmly for about a minute. The children receive acupuncture at point LI 4 in the grip of the thumb on the upper side of the hand, bilaterally, with a sterile disposable needle with dimensions 0.20 x 13 mm. The stitch is approximately three mm deep. The needle is allowed to remain in place for about 30 seconds
Other: Acupuncture
The children in the control group do not receive acupuncture. However, they spend the same amount of time with the acupuncture nurse, are addressed and are touched in the same way as the children in the intervention group, but do not get stung.
Acupuncture at point LI 4 in the thumb grip on the upper side of the hand, bilaterally, with a sterile disposable needle of dimension 0.20 x 13 mm. The stitch is approximately three mm deep. The needle is allowed to remain in place for about 30 seconds
Crying and screaming
Registration of crying and screaming during the acupuncture at each visit
Time frame: During acupuncture
Colic symptoms
Change in colic symptoms during the treatment period, comparison between groups. information will be collected by the diaries the parents write during the intervention period
Time frame: Baseline to 3 weeks
No study locations are listed for this record.
Plan to share: No
Start is estimated for Dec 2050; primary completion for Dec 2060, 120 months later.
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This study is withdrawn, as verified in Jan 2026. You cannot join it, but the record below documents what was studied.
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