Electroacupuncture and Acupuncture for Anxiety Disorders

Acupuncture and electroacupuncture can quickly reduce anxiety disorder, and it only takes five treatments to reduce anxiety to a low level. Until the 10th treatment, the anxiety level decreases, and the results do not depend on anti-anxiety drugs.

Background

Anxiety disorders are conflicts characterized by neurophysiological processes between a person and a dangerous environment and include conditions such as panic disorder, social anxiety disorder, separation anxiety disorder, phobias, selective mutism, anxiety disorders, anxiety disorders associated with medical conditions, and generalized anxiety disorder. The global incidence of anxiety disorders is estimated to increase as the COVID-19 outbreak worsens. In Western medicine, drug therapy is considered the first-line treatment for this disease. However, pure drug therapy also has disadvantages such as low efficiency, side effects, slow drug response, and high recurrence rate. Psychotherapy is another effective option that removes the root cause of the problem and allows the individual to return to life more safely, but it often requires a long-term solution.

Acupuncture treatment

Acupuncture, as a traditional Chinese medicine technique, coordinates the body’s energy flow by stimulating specific skin parts with fine needles to interact with the corresponding internal organs. Studies have shown that acupuncture positively affects anxiety disorders with fewer side effects than medication. However, further conclusions can be drawn due to the vast heterogeneity of research methods, small experimental groups, or distinctive experimental design, and few studies use measurable physiological indicators. Therefore, Diogo Amorim et al. designed a double-blind, randomized parallel clinical trial to evaluate the effectiveness of acupuncture and electroacupuncture in treating anxiety disorders through BAI, GAD-7, OASIS scoring scale, and salivary cortisol content. The findings are published in the January 2022 issue of Complement Ther Clin Pract.

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Conclusion

Acupuncture and electroacupuncture can quickly reduce anxiety levels, and only need five treatments to reduce anxiety to a low level. Until the 10th treatment, anxiety levels continue to decrease, and the results do not depend on anti-anxiety drugs. Analysis of salivary cortisol showed that it was more sensitive to sample variability. A longitudinal study of salivary cortisol levels, especially in morning samples, showed that cortisol levels decreased after ten treatments. Future studies with larger sample sizes may help confirm the current findings. Furthermore, there is always a limit to the uncertainty of the accuracy of the information expressed by the participants when administering anxiety self-tests.

Reference:

Amorim D, Brito I, Caseiro A, Figueiredo JP, Pinto A, Macedo I, Machado J. Electroacupuncture and acupuncture in the treatment of anxiety – A double blinded randomized parallel clinical trial. Complement Ther Clin Pract. 2022 Feb;46:101541. doi: 10.1016/j.ctcp.2022.101541. Epub 2022 Jan 30. PMID: 35124475.