Acupuntura como estratégia de tratamento da insônia e dos sintomas de humor depressivo relacionado: uma revisão integrativa da literatura

Abstract

Insomnia is a Common Mental Disorder (CMD) prevalent in contemporary society, especially post-COVID-19 pandemic, which significantly interferes with people's quality of life. It is characterized by dissatisfaction with the quantity and/or quality of sleep, causing negative impacts on physical and mental well-being. Studies on the effects of acupuncture have sought to understand the mechanisms of action of this complementary treatment and its benefits in the short, medium and long term. In this way, this objective literature review raises clinical scientific evidence on the effectiveness of acupuncture in the treatment of insomnia and related depressive symptoms, in addition to analyzing and identifying the main points used in the treatment of these disorders in clinical practice. The Randomized Clinical Trials (RCTs) developed had sleep quality as the primary stage and the assessment of mood symptoms and adverse events as secondary stages. The results, divided into different comparative categories (acupuncture versus placebo acupuncture, acupuncture versus minimal acupuncture and placebo acupuncture, augmented acupuncture versus standard acupuncture and acupuncture versus sham acupuncture and usual care), confirm the efficacy and safety of acupuncture as a complementary treatment for insomnia and related depressive symptoms. The most common points used in the studies, Yintang (VG29 or EX-HN3), Baihui (VG20), Anmian (EX-HN or EX-HN22), Shenmen (C7), Neiguan (PC6) and Sanyinjiao (BP6), had a significant efficacy, despite the individual diagnosis in most of the included RCTs not being adopted. We conclude that acupuncture represents a safe and useful non-pharmacological intervention option for insomnia and its improved effectiveness can be achieved by increasing the frequency of sessions per week, longer intervention time and investing in individualized protocols in the energetic disharmonies of treated patients. Furthermore, we understand that more designed, large-sample, rigorous, prospective, multicenter RCTs are needed to reduce the influence of publication views, improve research review, and better guide clinical practice.