Research from China has found that a combination of acupuncture and moxibustion, a form of heat therapy in which dried plant materials are burned on or near the surface of the skin to warm and invigorate the inner flow of qi, or energy, can effectively reduce the symptoms of benign prostate enlargement.

Researchers tested 128 patients with prostate enlargement for three months, dividing them into two groups. One group was given acupuncture and moxibustion; the other took a traditional Chinese herbal medication for prostate enlargement called Qianliekangi. The patients’ prostate symptoms were tested using the International Prostate Symptom Score, maximum urine flow rate and residual urine tests.

At the study’s end, the patients given the acupuncture/moxibustion treatment reported significantly reduced levels in all three tests—calculated at an 89 percent total effective rate—compared to the herbal medication group.