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Acupuncture designed to treat depression appears to improve symptoms in pregnant women, suggesting it as an alternative to antidepressant medication during pregnancy, a study found.

 

The study, published Monday in the journal Obstetrics & Gynecology, is the largest to date examining the effectiveness of acupuncture to treat depression in pregnant women. It was funded by a grant from the government's Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality. "Acupuncture that we have tested works for pregnant depressed women," said Rachel Manber, a study author and professor at Stanford University. However, "no single study is enough to make policy recommendations," she said.

Depression in pregnancy is a risk factor for postpartum depression. Postpartum depression is associated in some studies with poorer cognitive and emotional development in children. Some have linked depression in pregnancy and low birth weight.

 

As many as 14% of pregnant women are thought to develop a significant depression at some point during their pregnancy, according to the study authors, comparable to numbers who suffer from postpartum depression. Antidepressants are generally considered safe for use in pregnancy, but research has been limited and concerns continue to grow, according to the National Institute of Mental Health. One study showed that the risk of persistent pulmonary hypertension, a potentially serious lung condition, is significantly greater in newborns whose mother took antidepressants later in pregnancy. The Food and Drug Administration recommends that patients and physicians "carefully consider and discuss together" the benefits and risks taking antidepressants during pregnancy. "Antidepressants are not an attractive option for many women," said Dr. Manber. "Many women are concerned about using antidepressant medication during pregnancy."

 

Acupuncture, based on ancient Chinese medicine, attempts to treat conditions by stimulating points on the body, most often with needles stuck in the skin and moved by hand or electrical stimulation, according to the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine.

 

In the study, 150 clinically depressed pregnant women who weren't previously taking antidepressants were randomly assigned to get either acupuncture for depression, acupuncture not specifically designed for depression, or massage for eight weeks. Those who got acupuncture targeting depression had a significantly greater decrease in depressive symptoms, compared with the other women. Some 63% of women in the acupuncture-for-depression group responded to treatment, compared with 44% in the other groups.

 

There wasn't a difference between the groups in full recovery from depression. Though this study didn't compare acupuncture for depression with other active treatment, the response rates are comparable to those rates from other depression treatments in studies of non-pregnant individuals, Dr. Manber said. And future work needs to examine how acupuncture for depression compares with standard treatment of antidepressants or psychotherapy, as well as who responds to treatment and what the optimal dose of the acupuncture treatment should be.

 

Acupuncture More Effective than Medication for Post-Operative Nausea

Thursday, 11 March 2010

Leading the way in interactive medical pursuits, Duke University Medical Center researchers have found that acupuncture is more effective in reducing nausea than the leading medication prescribed for patients recovering from major surgery. Published in the September 22, 2004 journal Anesthesia and Analgesia, the researchers reported that patients who received acupuncture treatments had decreased post-operative pain and increased satisfaction with their post-operative recovery.

 

 

Treating post-operative nausea and vomiting is one of the largest medical challenges following general anesthesia. According to Duke Anesthesiologist Tong Joo (T.J.) Gan, M.D., about 70 percent of women of women who undergo major breast surgery requiring general anesthesia suffer from post-operative nausea and vomiting. These adverse side effects are important factors in determining how soon patients can return home after surgery.

 

As the lead researcher, Gan said, “The patients in our randomized trial who received acupuncture enjoyed a more comfortable recovery from their surgery than those who received anti-sickness medication. In the areas of PONV (post-operative nausea and vomiting) control, pain relief and general overall satisfaction, acupuncture appears to be more effective than the most commonly used medication, with few to no side effects.”

 

In addition to this study on women undergoing major breast surgery, Gan also led a more recent analysis on this topic by combining data from 15 small, randomized, acupuncture clinical trials. He found that patients who received acupuncture had a significantly lower risk of developing the most common side effects associated with opioid drugs compared with control group. When measured against the control group, the combined results demonstrated that the acupuncture recipients had:

 

According to Gan, “While the amount of opioids needed for patients who receive acupuncture was much lower than those who did not have acupuncture, the most important outcome for the patient is the reduction of the side effects associated with opioids. These side effects can negatively impact a patient’s recovery from surgery and lengthen the time spent in the hospital.”

 

The results of Gan’s research add to the growing body of evidence that acupuncture can play an effective role in improving the quality of the surgical experience. “Acupuncture is slowly becoming more accepted by American physicians, but it is still underutilized,” Gan said. “Studies like this, which show that there is a benefit to using it, should help give physicians sitting on the fence the data they need to integrate acupuncture into their routine care of surgery patients.”

 

Excerpt from an article written by: Nicole Cutler, L.Ac.

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