Trial reportBioMed research international2018
A Multicenter, Randomized, Controlled Trial of Electroacupuncture for Perimenopause Women with Mild-Moderate Depression.
Trial report in BioMed research international, 2018. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 24 papers, 4 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
24 citing papers in PubMed, 4 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 32 citations in OpenAlex.
- Pharmacotherapy, acupoint stimulation, and psychotherapy for perimenopausal women with anxiety, depression, and panic disorder: a systematic review and network meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.Frontiers in psychiatry · 2026Pooled it
- Effect of different acupuncture modalities on sex hormone levels in perimenopausal women: a network meta-analysis.Frontiers in endocrinology · 2026Pooled it
- Effect of acupuncture on menopausal depressive disorder and serum hormone levels: a systematic review and meta-analysis.Frontiers in psychiatry · 2025Pooled it
- Acupuncture as an Independent or Adjuvant Management to Standard Care for Perimenopausal Depression: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.Frontiers in psychiatry · 2021Pooled it
- Efficacy and Safety of Hormone Replacement Combined With Escitalopram in the Treatment of Chronic Insomnia in Perimenopausal Women: A Randomized Controlled Trial.CNS neuroscience & therapeutics · 2025Trial
- Acupuncture for comorbid depression and insomnia in perimenopause: A feasibility patient-assessor-blinded, randomized, and sham-controlled clinical trial.Frontiers in public health · 2023Trial
- Acupuncture for premature ovarian insufficiency: a systemic neuroendocrine perspective.Frontiers in endocrinology · 2026Review
- Research Progress in the Treatment of Postpartum Depression.Cellular and molecular neurobiology · 2025Review
- Choline Alphoscerate: A Therapeutic Option for the Management of Subthreshold Depression in the Older Population.Geriatrics (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Review
- Acupuncture effects on emotional reactivity of youth with self-reported depressive symptoms.Psychoradiology · 2025Article
- Transcriptome analysis of rats with chronic unpredictable mild stress treated with electroacupuncture.Brain and behavior · 2024Article
- Estrogen-immuno-neuromodulation disorders in menopausal depression.Journal of neuroinflammation · 2024Review
- Potential Mechanisms and Clinical Effectiveness of Acupuncture in Depression.Current neuropharmacology · 2022Review
- Electroacupuncture Ameliorates Depressive-Like State and Synaptic Deficits Induced by Hyper-Cholinergic Tone During Chronic Stress in Rats.Medical science monitor : international medical journal of experimental and clinical research · 2021Article
- Article
- Acupuncture for Subthreshold Depression: Study Protocol for a Randomized Controlled Trial.Frontiers in psychiatry · 2021Article
- Acupuncture: A Promising Approach for Comorbid Depression and Insomnia in Perimenopause.Nature and science of sleep · 2021Review
- Effects of electroacupuncture therapy for depression: Study protocol for a multicentered, randomized controlled trial.Medicine · 2020Article
- Electroacupuncture improves synaptic plasticity by regulating the 5-HT1A receptor in hippocampus of rats with chronic unpredictable mild stress.The Journal of international medical research · 2020Article
- Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
20 authors at 7 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
objectiveUp to 62% of perimenopausal women have depression symptoms. However, there is no efficacy treatment. The aim of this study is to compare the clinical efficacy and safety of EA therapy and escitalopram on perimenopause women with mild-moderate depressive symptom.
methodA multicenter, randomized, positive-controlled clinical trial was conducted at 6 hospitals in China. 242 perimenopause women with mild-moderate depressive symptom were recruited and randomly assigned to receive 36 sessions of EA treatment or escitalopram treatment. The primary outcome measure was the 17-item Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HAMD-17). The secondary outcome measures include menopause-specific quality of life (MENQOL) and serum sexual hormones which include estrogen, follicle-stimulating hormone, and luteinizing hormone.
results221 (91.3%) completed the study, including 116 in the EA group and 105 in the escitalopram group. The baseline levels of demographic and outcome measurements were similar in the two groups. In the intervention period, there was no difference between two groups. However, in the follow-up, both HAMD-17 and MENQOL were significantly decreased, and at week 24 the mean differences were -2.23 and -8.97, respectively. There were no significant differences in the change of serum sexual hormones between the two groups. No serious adverse events occurred.
conclusionEA treatment is effective and safe in relieving depression symptom and improving the quality of life in the perimenopausal depression. Further research is needed to understand long-term efficacy and explore the mechanism of this intervention. This study is registered with
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.