PCT of Pharmacopuncture for Chronic Neck Pain

Exclusion Criteria

• •1. Patients diagnosed with serious specific diseases that could be the cause of neck pain (e.g., spinal metastasis of tumors, acute fractures, and spinal dislocations)
• •2. Patients exhibiting progressive neurological deficits or severe neurological symptoms
• •3. Patients whose pain originates from soft tissue disorders rather than the spine (e.g., tumors, fibromyalgia, rheumatoid arthritis, gout)
• •4. Patients with other chronic diseases that could interfere with the interpretation of treatment effects or outcomes (e.g., stroke, myocardial infarction, kidney disease, diabetic neuropathy, dementia, epilepsy)
• •5. Patients currently taking steroids, immunosuppressants, psychiatric medications, or other drugs that could affect the study results
• •6. Patients for whom pharmacopuncture treatment is inappropriate or unsafe: those with bleeding disorders, those undergoing anticoagulant therapy, and severe diabetic patients with infection risks
• •7. Patients who have taken medications that could affect pain (e.g., Non-Steroidal Anti-Inflammatory Drugs, NSAIDs) or received pharmacopuncture, acupuncture, or physical therapy within the past week
• •8. Pregnant women, those planning to become pregnant, or those currently breastfeeding
• •9. Patients who have undergone cervical spine surgery within the past 3 months
• •10. Patients who have not completed participation in another clinical study within the past month or plan to participate in another clinical study during the study participation and follow-up period within 6 months from the date of selection
• •11. Patients who find it difficult to provide informed consent for participation
• •12. Other cases where the researcher deems participation in the clinical study to be difficult