Effectiveness of an experimental therapeutic approach based on a combined acupuncture and homotoxicological drugs compared with an allopathic treatment in four cases of male Bigorexia: research paper

Objectives: The aim of this study is to verify the effectiveness of a unconventional therapeutic approach which includes the use of acupuncture and homotoxicological drug for the treatment of male Bigorexia versus a classic treatment. Patients and Methods: Four Italian male patients with a diagnosis of Bigorexia (body dysmorphic disorder and muscle dysmorphia) were randomly divided into two groups: an experimental group and a control group. At the four participants some standardized tests and questionnaires were administered to evaluate the clinical state and personal suffering (MDDI-ITA, QDC, EAI, SCL-90) before starting a conventional treatment with antidepressants and anxiolytics (control group) and a combined treatment of acupuncture and homotoxicological drugs (experimental group) at time 0. The control group continued with the classic treatment for 14 weeks, while the experimental group followed a protocol for the same period of 15 acupuncture sessions, the first three of which were performed in the first week, while the other 12 were performed weekly for a total of 13 weeks. During the treatment period, the two patients in the experimental group also followed a pharmacological protocol of homotoxicological drugs that they continued even after the end of the acupuncture sessions. In the week following the end of the sessions (t14), all the participants were evaluated with the same tests scheduled at time 0 and a satisfaction questionnaire was administered. The data obtained were then compared. Results: We found a general improvement in both groups not only in the reduction of the “core symptoms” of bigorexia, but also in psychophysical and relational well-being. The results in both groups were comparable. Conclusions: The data suggests that an unconventional treatment such as acupuncture associated with homotoxicology might represent a valid alternative or a complementary treatment to a classical approach. The level of satisfaction of the experimental group was higher than the control group.