The Efficacy of Acupuncture for Treating Depression-Related Insomnia Compared with a Control Group: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

Biomed Res Int. 2017;2017:9614810. doi: 10.1155/2017/9614810. Epub 2017 Feb 14.

The Efficacy of Acupuncture for Treating Depression-Related Insomnia Compared with a Control Group: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

Dong B1,Chen Z1,Yin X1,Li D2,Ma J1,Yin P1,Cao Y1,Lao L3,Xu S1.

Author information:

1 Shanghai Municipal Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine Shanghai, Shanghai University of TCM, Shanghai 200071, China.

2 School of Medicine, Nanchang University, Jiangxi 330031, China.

3 School of Chinese Medicine, The University of Hong Kong, 10 Sassoon Road, Pokfulam, Hong Kong; School of Medicine, Center for Integrative Medicine,University of Maryland, Baltimore, MD 21201, USA.

Abstract

Objective.To evaluate the effectiveness of acupuncture as monotherapy and as an alternative therapy in treating depression-related insomnia.Data Source.Seven databases were searched starting from 1946 to March 30, 2016.Study Eligibility Criteria.Randomized-controlled trials of adult subjects (18-75 y) who had depression-related insomnia and had received acupuncture.Results.18 randomized-controlled clinical trials (RCTs) were introduced in this meta-analysis. The findings determined that the acupuncture treatment made significant improvements in PSQI score (MD = -2.37, 95% CI -3.52 to -1.21) compared with Western medicine. Acupuncture combined with Western medicine had a better effect on improving sleep quality (MD = -2.63, 95% CI -4.40 to -0.86) compared with the treatment of Western medicine alone. There was no statistical difference (MD = -2.76, 95% CI -7.65 to 2.12) between acupuncture treatment and Western medicine towards improving the HAMD score. Acupuncture combined with Western medicine (MD = -5.46, CI -8.55 to -2.38) had more effect on improving depression degree compared with the Western medicine alone.Conclusion. This systematic review indicates that acupuncture could be an alternative therapy to medication for treating depression-related insomnia.

PMCID: PMC5329663Free PMC Article

PMID: 28286776[Indexed for MEDLINE]