Intradermal acupuncture on shen-men and nei-kuan acupoints improves insomnia in stroke patients by reducing the sympathetic nervous activity: a randomized clinical trial.

November 26, 2009

Intradermal acupuncture on shen-men and nei-kuan acupoints improves insomnia in stroke patients by reducing the sympathetic nervous activity: a randomized clinical trial.

Am J Chin Med. 2009;37(6):1013-21

Authors: Lee SY, Baek YH, Park SU, Moon SK, Park JM, Kim YS, Jung WS

This study is a double-blind randomized controlled trial on the effect of intradermal acupuncture on insomnia after stroke. Hospitalized stroke patients with insomnia were enrolled in the study and were randomly assigned to either a real intradermal acupuncture group (RA group) or a sham acupuncture group (SA group). The RA group received intradermal acupuncture on Shen-Men (He-7) and Nei-Kuan (EH-6) for three days, and the SA group received sham acupuncture on the same points. The effect of acupuncture on insomnia was measured using Insomnia Severity Index (ISI) and Athens Insomnia Scale (AIS) at baseline and three days after treatment. To assess the effect of acupuncture on the autonomic nervous function, the subjects’ blood pressure and heart rate variability were monitored. Fifty-two subjects (27 in the RA group and 25 in the SA group) were included in the final analysis. The insomnia-related scales ISI and AIS showed greater improvement of insomnia in the RA group than in the SA group. Moreover, there is a greater reduction of the number of non-dippers and a greater decrease of the LF/HF ratio (heart rate variability) in the RA group than in the SA group. These results indicate that sympathetic hyperactivities were stabilized in the RA group. It can thus be concluded that intradermal acupuncture on Shen-Men and Nei-Kuan is a useful therapeutic method for post stroke-onset insomnia as it reduces sympathetic hyperactivities.

PMID: 19938212 [PubMed - in process]

Filed under: News | Comments Off

Acupuncture for Treatment of Insomnia: A Systematic Review of Randomized Controlled Trials.

November 20, 2009

Acupuncture for Treatment of Insomnia: A Systematic Review of Randomized Controlled Trials.

J Altern Complement Med. 2009 Nov;15(11):1171-1186

Authors: Cao H, Pan X, Li H, Liu J

Abstract Background: Acupuncture is commonly used in treating insomnia in China, and clinical studies have shown that acupuncture may have a beneficial effect on insomnia compared with Western medication. Methods: We included randomized controlled trials on acupuncture for insomnia. We searched PubMed, the Cochrane Library (2008 Issue 3), China Network Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI), Chinese Scientific Journal Database (VIP), and Wan Fang Database. All searches ended in December 2008. Two authors extracted data and assessed the trials’ quality independently. RevMan 5.0.17 software was used for data analysis with effect estimate presented as relative risk (RR) and mean difference (MD) with a 95% confidence interval (CI). Results: Forty-six (46) randomized trials involving 3811 patients were included, and the methodological quality of trials was generally fair in terms of randomization, blinding, and intention-to-treat analysis. Meta-analyses showed a beneficial effect of acupuncture compared with no treatment (MD -3.28, 95% CI -6.10 to -0.46, p = 0.02; 4 trials) and real acupressure compared with sham acupressure (MD -2.94, 95% CI -5.77 to -0.11, p = 0.04; 2 trials) on total scores of Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index. Acupuncture was superior to medications regarding the number of patients with total sleep duration increased for >3 hours (RR 1.53, 95% CI 1.24-1.88, p < 0.0001). However, there was no difference between acupuncture and medications in average sleep duration (MD -0.06, 95% CI -0.30-0.18, p = 0.63). Acupuncture plus medications showed better effect than medications alone on total sleep duration (MD 1.09, 95% CI 0.56-1.61, p < 0.0001). Similarly, acupuncture plus herbs was significantly better than herbs alone on increase of sleep rates (RR 1.67, 95% CI 1.12-2.50, p = 0.01). There were no serious adverse effects with related to acupuncture treatment in the included trials. Conclusions: Acupuncture appears to be effective in treatment of insomnia. However, further large, rigorous designed trials are warranted.

PMID: 19922248 [PubMed - as supplied by publisher]

Filed under: News | Comments Off

Insomnia May Be Treated Effectively By Meditation

June 11, 2009

Meditation may be an effective behavioral intervention in the treatment of insomnia, according to a research abstract presented at SLEEP 2009, the 23rd Annual Meeting of the Associated Professional Sleep Societies Results indicate that patients saw improvements in subjective sleep quality and sleep diary parameters while practicing meditation.

Filed under: MIND, News | Comments (0)

Genetic Link Found Between Stress-Induced Sleep Loss And Intrusive Thinking

June 11, 2009

The genetic factors that cause increased sleep problems during times of stress seem to be the same as those that make people with intrusive and ruminative thoughts have a higher prevalence of insomnia, according to a research abstract presented at SLEEP 2009, the 23rd Annual Meeting of the Associated Professional Sleep Societies.

Filed under: MIND, News | Comments Off

A Bidirectional Relationship Between Chronic Stress And Sleep Problems shown by study

June 10, 2009

According to a research abstract that will be presented on Wednesday, June 10, at SLEEP 2009, the 23rd Annual Meeting of the Associated Professional Sleep Societies, people with chronic stress report shorter sleep duration, worse sleep quality, and more daytime functioning impairments. Conversely, daytime functioning impairments and shorter sleep duration demonstrated a predictive relationship with habitual stress complaints.

Filed under: MIND, News | Comments Off

Discovery Of Genetic Link Between Anxiety, Depression And Insomnia

June 9, 2009

The genes that play a role in adolescent insomnia are the same as those involved in depression and anxiety, according to a research abstract presented on June 8, at SLEEP 2009, the 23rd Annual Meeting of the Associated Professional Sleep Societies. Results of the study indicate that insomnia as a diagnosis has a moderate heritability in 8 to 16 year olds, which is consistent with past studies of insomnia symptoms in adults.

Filed under: MIND, News | Comments Off

Discovery Of Relationship Between Napping, Hyperactivity, Depression And Anxiety In Young Children

June 9, 2009

Napping may have a significant influence on young children’s daytime functioning, according to a research abstract presented on Monday, June 8 at SLEEP 2009, the 23rd Annual Meeting of the Associated Professional Sleep Societies. Results indicate that children between the ages of 4 and 5 who did not take daytime naps were reported by their parents to exhibit higher levels of hyperactivity, anxiety and depression than children who continued to nap at this age.

Filed under: MIND, News | Comments Off