Electroacupuncture and Cognitive Behavioural Therapy for Sub-Syndromal Depression among Undergraduates: A Controlled Clinical Trial

Abstract

BackgroundIndividuals with sub-syndromal depression (SSD) are at increased risk of incident depressive disorders; however, the ideal therapeutic approach to SSD remains unknown.ObjectiveTo evaluate the effects of electroacupuncture (EA) and cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT), alone or in combination, on depressive symptoms.MethodsUndergraduate students with SSD were recruited and allocated to one of four groups based on their preferences: EA (n=6), CBT (n=10), EA+CBT (n=6), and untreated control (n=11) groups. Six weeks of treatment were provided in the first three groups. Clinical outcomes were measured using the 17-item Hamilton Depression (HAMD-17) rating scale, Center for Epidemiologic Depression (CES-D) scale, WHO Quality of Life-Brief version (WHOQOL-BREF) questionnaire, and clinical remission rate.ResultsAll 33 subjects were included in an intent-to-treat analysis. Statistically significant improvements in HAMD-17, CES-D, and WHOQOL-BREF scores and a higher remission rate were found in the EA, CBT, and EA+CBT intervention groups compared with the control group (all p<0.05). No significant differences were found between the three intervention groups. HAMD-17 factor score analysis revealed that EA reduced sleep disturbance scores more than CBT or EA+CBT (p<0.05), and CBT reduced retardation scores more than EA (p<0.01). EA+CBT reduced anxiety/somatisation scores more than EA or CBT (p<0.05) and retardation scores more than EA (p<0.05).ConclusionsEarly intervention may alleviate depressive symptoms in SSD. EA and CBT may have differential effects on certain symptoms. Combination therapy targeting both physical and psychological symptoms may represent an ideal strategy for SSD intervention. However, randomised trials with larger sample sizes are needed.Trial registration numberChiCTR-TRC-10000889; Results.

Cognitive improvement effects of electro-acupuncture for the treatment of MCI compared with Western medications: a systematic review and Meta-analysis

“…This gives the patients an acupuncture effect and electricity stimulation simultaneously. Recently, many studies have been performed to evaluate EA and the results generally showed efficacy and safety [8] for neurological diseases such as MCI [9], schizophrenia [10], vascular dementia [11, 12], stroke [13], depressive symptoms [14], Parkinson’s disease [15], and Alzheimer’s disease [16]. However, a systematical review of studies on MCI has not been performed to date.…”

Electro-Acupuncture Alleviates Chronic Unpredictable Stress-Induced Depressive- and Anxiety-Like Behavior and Hippocampal Neuroinflammation in Rat Model of Depression

“…As a modern therapeutic practice of CAM, electroacupuncture (EA) combines standard acupuncture with a gentle electrical current to stimulate acupuncture points. EA has been used successfully to treat depression in China and several other countries worldwide for its efficiency and minimal adverse effects (Ulett et al, 1998 ; Kim et al, 2013 ; Guo et al, 2016 ; Schroeder et al, 2017 ). Previous clinical and preclinical studies have showed that EA relieved depressive-like behavior in patients with depression and animal models (Ulett et al, 1998 ; Duan et al, 2016 ; Li et al, 2017 ).…”

Effect of Electroacupuncture and Counseling on Sub-Threshold Depression: A Study Protocol for a Multicenter Randomized Controlled Trial

“…EA has been widely used to treat different psychiatric conditions, including depressive disorder (43). The putative antidepressant actions of EA are believed to involve modulation of hormones, neurotransmitters, and/or cytokines (25). Le et al also found that EA could regulate the hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal cortex axis, influence the hippocampus, and affect the dopaminergic and/or serotonergic systems to exert antidepressive activity (44).…”

“…A cross-sectional study found that depression is the second most common of the most commonly treated acupuncture indications in the United States (24). A single-center controlled trial of subthreshold depression found that EA, counseling, and EA + counseling could significantly improve HAMD-17 scores, Center for Epidemiologic Depression scale, and WHO Quality of Life-Brief version scores of undergraduates students, and the remission rate is higher than that of the control group (p<0.05) (25). However, the clinical value of this finding is limited because it is a single-center clinical trial with a small sample size.…”