Clinical Study of Spirit-Regulating Acupuncture Improving Sleep Latency and Hyperarousal of Patients with CID
Objective:To observe the clinical effectiveness of spirit-regulating acupuncture in improving sleep latency and hyperarousal among patients suffering from chronic insomnia disorder(CID).Methods:100 CID patients were randomly assigned into the treatment group and the control group,with 50 patients in each group.The treatment group was treated with spirit-regulating acupuncture,and the acupoints chosen were Baihui(DU20),Shenting(DU24),Sishencong(EX-HN4),Benshen(GB13),Shenmen(HT7),Neiguan(PC6)and Sanyinjiao(SP6).The control group was treated with shallow needling ineffective points for insomnia.The needling was 3 times per week for four weeks,with 30 min needle retention each time.The patients in both groups were provided the same sleep hygiene guidance.Sleep latency,Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index(PSQI)score and Hyperarousal scale(HAS)score in the sleep diary were evaluated and compared between the two groups before the treatment,after the treatment and 8 weeks after the treatment.The correlation was analyzed between the improvement of sleep latency and the changes of hyperarousal level.Results:The sleep latency was shorter after 4 weeks of the treatment compared with that before the treatment in the two groups(P<0.01);the sleep latency was shorter during the follow-up compared with that before the treatment in the two group(P<0.05).Both the PSQI score and HAS score were significantly reduced in the two groups after the treatment and during the follow-up(P<0.05).The sleep latency was shorter in the treatment group than that in the control group after 4 weeks of the treatment(P<0.01).The PSQI score and the HAS score were significantly decreased in the treatment group than those in the control group after the treatment(P<0.05).The reduction of sleep latency is positively correlated with the decrease of the hyperarousal level.Conclusion:Spirit-regulating acupuncture can effectively shorten sleep latency,improve sleep quality and reduce hyperarousal,which is the potential mechanism of improving sleep.