Category: Depression

A pilot study carried out in America looking at acupuncture for depression, has found it to be a safe, well-tolerated and effective treatment for patients with major depressive disorder (MDD).

Thirty outpatients with MDD (73% female and mean age 47), received acupuncture for eight weeks, either once or twice a week depending on their preference. Depression scores decreased from 19.1 to 9.9 in the once-weekly group, and from 21.9 to 14.3 in the twice-weekly group. The researchers say the results suggest acupuncture has good feasibility in outpatient settings, and that a full controlled trial is warranted.

(A Pilot Study of Acupuncture Monotherapy in Patients with Major Depressive Disorder. Journal of Affective Disorders, accepted March 2012.)

American researchers have completed a pilot study suggesting that acupuncture may be a useful adjunct to drug treatment in patients with depression, who are not responding to anti-depressant drugs alone.

Thirty patients (47% female and average age 48) with major depressive disorder, and partial or non-response to drug treatment after eight or more weeks, were given acupuncture for eight weeks, on either a weekly or twice-weekly basis. Twenty patients completed the study, and depression scores in both groups decreased significantly (18.5 to 11.5 on average). Response rates (defined as an improvement of 50% or more in depression score) were 47%. The authors concluded that acupuncture was safe, well-tolerated and effective, and may be useful in out-patient settings.

(A Pilot Study of Acupuncture Augmentation Therapy in Anti-Depressant Partial & Non-Responders with Major Depressive Disorder. Journal of Affect Disorders, April 2011.)

A systematic review and meta-analysis of clinical studies looking at acupuncture and depression, has concluded that it is a safe and effective treatment for some forms of the condition.

A total of 207 studies were examined, and 20 were deemed to be of sufficient quality to be subject to meta-analysis. The results showed that for major depressive disorders, acupuncture on its own is as effective as anti-depressant medication in improving symptom severity. For post-stroke depression, acupuncture was also found to be superior to anti-depressants, in improving response and symptom severity. Notably, the incidence of adverse events in acupuncture treatment, was significantly lower than with anti-depressants.

(The Effectiveness and Safety of Acupuncture Therapy in Depressive Disorders: Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Journal of Affective Disorders, 2009.)

A meta-analysis of eight small randomised controlled trials, involving 477 patients and studying whether acupuncture is effective for depression, concluded that acupuncture was a useful treatment that could significantly reduce the severity of depression.

(Is Acupuncture Beneficial in Depression: A Meta-Analysis of Eight Randomised Controlled Trials? Journal of Affective Disorders, December 2008.)

A multi-centre randomised controlled study of acupuncture for depression, involving 440 patients, found the benefits of acupuncture to be similar to or better than, those of Prozac, and with fewer side effects.

(Acupuncture for Treatment of Depressive Neurosis: A Multi-Centre Randomised Controlled Study. Zhongguo Zhen Jiu, January 2008.)