Clinical Observation of Scalp and Body Acupuncture plus Psychological Intervention for Post-stroke Depression / 上海针灸杂志

ABSTRACT

Objective To observe the effect of scalp-body acupuncture plus psychological intervention in treating post-stroke depression.Method Seventy-eight patients with post-stroke depression were divided into a treatment group (40 cases) and a control group (38 cases). In addition to ordinary neurological treatments, the treatment group also received scalp-body acupuncture plus psychological intervention while the control group also received Fluoxetine hydrochloride (Prozac). The interventions were given once a day, 4 weeks as a treatment course, for 2 courses in total. Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression (HAMD) and neurological impairment severity scale (NISS) were observed before intervention, after 1 treatment course and at the end of the intervention.Result After intervention, the HAMD and NISS scores dropped significantly in both groups, and the treatment group was markedly better than the control group (P＜0.05). The total effective rates of anti-depression and recovery of neurological function in the treatment group were significantly higher than those in the control group (P＜0.05).Conclusion Scalp-body acupuncture plus psychological intervention can produce a content efficacy in improving depression and recovering neurological function.