Electroacupuncture Treatment Of Insomnia Associated With Clinical Studies Of Major Depressive Disorder

Insomnia is a common problem in clinic, especially at general hospital where many insomnia patients with depressive disorders including depressive neurosis or depressed episode may not easily be recognized. Electric acupuncture (EA) has good effect on depressive disorders according to the former studies, So this clinical study further attempted to determine the efficacy of electric acupuncture (EA) to the patients with both insomnia and depressive neurosis or episode, whether electric acupuncture (EA) has the capacity of relieving anxiety or depression and inducing calmness and good sleep, and what is the difference between electric acupuncture (EA) and Trazodone (HCI) as well as its own mechanism have been explained in this paper.Methods60 patients who met the ICD-10 and CCMD-3 criteria of insomnia and diagnosed as depressive neurosis or depressed episode were selected into two different groups at random. The 30 of total patients were treated with electric acupuncture (EA) while 30 patients orally administrated Trazodone(HCI). The efficacy were assessed by Sleep Questionnaire (SQ), Self-rating Anxiety Scale (SAS), Self-Rating Depression Scale (SDS) and Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HAMD) as well as Clinical Global Impression (CGI).The safety was assessed with Asberg Side Effect Scale. Electric Sleep wave from the apparatus of Automatic electric acupuncture produced by Beijing zhongke medical technology company was applied to patients. The Acupoints of "Baihui" and "yintang" were used when taking EA. "Shenman", "taicong" and "zusanli" were selected for the patients of hepatic stagnation while splenic asthenia; "Neiguan""shenmen"and"zusanli" were chosen for cardiac-splenic asthenia;"Neiguan""shenmen"and "Taixi" were for breakdown of the normal physiological coordination between the heart and kidney. Patients in EA group were given EA daily for 60 minutes for 4 weeks. Patients in the other group contain HCI also for 4 weeks with daily dose from 50-150mg.ResultsThey show that:1. The scores of SQ and SAS were significantly reduced in both groups, but there is no significant difference between its own reduction of SQ and SAS scores, which means both EA and HCI have similar efficacy in the treatment of Insomnia and same effect on reducing anxiety.2. For the insomniacs with depressive neurosis, EA is better since the reduction of its HAMD scores are similar to HCI without any great side effect. For the insomniacs with depressed episode, HCI is more effective because the HAMD scores were significantly more reduced in HCI group than EA group. Meanwhile, the scores of the syndrome of anxiety somatization of EA after treatment were significantly lower than that of HCI. 3. The scores of Asberg Rating Scale of Trazodone group were significantly higher than EA group. Because HCI has more side effects than EA. So the efficacy index of EA group is significantly higher than Trazodone group in the scale of CGI.1 Conclusion The treatment of acupuncture (EA) has similar capacity of improving insomnia with Trazodone (HCI), and same effect on reducing anxiety, which can adapt to the insomniacs of depressive disorders, especially for those who have many somatoform symptoms. Trazodone (HCI) is good for the insomniacs of depressions.