Evidence map›Paper›PMID 34733978›Full record

ArticleAnnals of translational medicine2021

Randomized controlled trial of acupuncture for anxiety and depression in patients with chronic insomnia.

Chenyong Liu, Yanan Zhao, Shan Qin, Xiaoqiu Wang, Yuanyuan Jiang, Wenzhong Wu

Open access · diamondAbstract read
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Article in Annals of translational medicine, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 40 papers, 10 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
40citing papers in PubMed, 10 pooled it
6.7field-weighted citation impact, top 3% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

40 citing papers in PubMed, 10 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 63 citations in OpenAlex.

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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

6 authors at 3 institutions in 1 country.

Chenyong LiuJiangsu Province Hospital of Chinese Medicine, Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing University of Chinese Medicine, Nanjing, China.
Yanan ZhaoJiangsu Province Hospital of Chinese Medicine, Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing University of Chinese Medicine, Nanjing, China.
Shan QinJiangsu Province Hospital of Chinese Medicine, Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing University of Chinese Medicine, Nanjing, China.
Xiaoqiu WangJiangsu Province Hospital of Chinese Medicine, Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing University of Chinese Medicine, Nanjing, China.
Yuanyuan JiangJiangsu Province Academy of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Nanjing, China.
Wenzhong WuJiangsu Province Hospital of Chinese Medicine, Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing University of Chinese Medicine, Nanjing, China.
Jiangsu Province Hospital · CNNanjing University of Chinese Medicine · CNJiangsu Provincial Academy of Traditional Chinese Medicine · CN

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundAcupuncture treatment of chronic insomnia (CI) was effective. Anxiety and depression symptoms of the CI patients were improved to varying degrees after acupuncture treatment. Corticosterone (CORT) and 5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT) are involved in the occurrence and development of comorbidity of insomnia, anxiety, and depression. Whether acupuncture can treat insomnia and accompany anxiety and depression symptoms by regulating CORT and 5-HT is still unclear.

methodsThis was a randomized, single-blind (participant), parallel, placebo-controlled trial. Sixty CI patients were randomly divided into acupuncture and sham acupuncture groups, with 30 patients in each group. In the acupuncture group, acupuncture was applied at Baihui (GV20), Yintang (GV29), Shenmen (HT7, bilateral), and Sanyinjiao (SP6, bilateral), while in the sham acupuncture group, superficial needles were used on non-disorder-related acupoints. Both groups were treated 3 times a week (once every other day) for 4 weeks and at the 3-month follow-up. The patients were assessed using the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PQSI), Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale (HAMA), and Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HAMD). The serum concentrations of CORT and 5-HT were also measured before and after treatment.

resultsAfter treatment, the decrease in serum CORT and the increase in serum 5-HT were significantly greater in the acupuncture group than in the sham acupuncture group. At follow-up, the PSQI, HAMA, and HAMD scores in the acupuncture group were significantly lower than those in the sham acupuncture group.

conclusionsElevated serum CORT and decreased serum 5-HT levels may be associated with mood regulation disorders in CI patients. Acupuncture can significantly improve the sleep quality, efficiency, and latency of CI patients, and it can alleviate anxiety and depression in such patients. Compared with the sham acupuncture group, the acupuncture group showed a stable long-term efficacy.

trial registrationChinese Clinical Trials Register ChiCTR1800020298.

Indexed as

acupunctureanxietyChronic insomnia (CI)depression

Identifiers

PMID34733978
PMCPMC8506741
OpenAlexW3202608275

What OpenQuestion holds

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LicenceCC BY-NC-ND
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Registered trials

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.