Observation on Therapeutic Effect of Head-Acupuncture Combined with Body-Acupuncture for Treatment of Post Cerebral Infarction Depression

Objective:To search for an effective therapy for post cerebral infarction depression.Methods:80 cases were randomly divided into two groups.The acupuncture group(40cases) was treated with head-acupuncture and body-acupuncture.The western medicine group(40 cases) was treated with oral administration of Fluoxetine Hydrochlo-ride at the dosage of 20 mg every day.These treatments lasted for 6 weeks in both groups.The depression severities were assessed with Hamilton Depression Scale(HAMD) before treatment and at the 6th week of the treatment and adverse reactions were appraised respectively with Treatment Emergent Symptom Scale(TESS).Results:The total effective rate was 95.0% in the acupuncture group and 90.0% in the western medicine group with no significant difference between the two groups(P0.05).After treatment,the HAMD score had very significant changes in the two groups as compared with those before treatment(both P0.01),but there was no significant difference between the two groups(P0.05).After treatment,there was a significant difference between two groups in TESS score(P0.01).There was almost no adverse reaction in the acupuncture group,while the main clinical manifestations in the western medicine group were nausea,anorexia,diarrhea,etc.Conclusion:Head-acupuncture combined with body-acupuncture can significantly improve symptoms of post cerebral infarction depression patients with a similar therapeutic effect to oral administration of Fluoxetine Hydro-chloride and it is a safe method for post cerebral infarction depression without adverse reactions.