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InsomniaNCT00839592

Acupuncture for Primary Insomnia

A study testing Electroacupuncture in people with Insomnia, run by The University of Hong Kong at 1 site in Hong Kong.

Completed

Finished. The study has ended and is not enrolling. Results may be posted on the official record.

Official record
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Trial summary

This is a randomized controlled trial to evaluate acupuncture treatment on insomnia in the adult population in Hong Kong. Read more about this study

Who is it for?
Ages 18 to 65 years
Conditions the study is for
Insomnia
What is being tested?
Electroacupuncture
Could I receive a placebo?
Yes, some participants may receive a placebo
How many people
60 participants
Where
1 siteHong Kong
Study dates
Jul 2006to Apr 2007
Phase
Interventional
Are there results?
None posted in the registry

Key requirements

Who can take part, as listed by the sponsor. Only the study team can confirm whether you are eligible, so take this list to your doctor.

  • Ages 18 to 65 years
  • All sexes
  • No healthy volunteers
  • Adult, Older adult

Who may be able to join

  • Hong Kong residents
  • aged 18-65
  • Ethnic Chinese
  • Meet the diagnosis criteria of primary insomnia for at least 3 months according to DSM-IV using the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV (SCID)
  • Willing to give informed consent
  • total score of Insomnia Severity Index (ISI) at least 15
  • Able to comply with trial protocol

Who cannot join

  • Participation in any clinical trial during the previous 3 months prior to baseline
  • Any current major depressive disorder, generalized anxiety disorders or panic disorder, manic or hypomanic episode, substance use disorders besides caffeine and nicotine, organic mental disorder, schizophrenia or any other psychotic disorder as defined by DSM-IV criteria
  • Serious physical illness or mental disorders due to a general medical condition which is judged by the investigator to render unsafe
  • Valvular heart defects, bleeding disorders or taking anticoagulant drugs.
  • Any acupuncture treatment during the previous 12 months prior to baseline.
  • In the investigator's opinion, the patient has a significant risk of suicide
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  • Pregnant, breast-feeding, or woman of childbearing potential not using adequate contraception
  • Infection or abscess close to the site of selected acupoints and in the investigator's opinion inclusion is unsafe
  • Herbal remedies, over-the-counter medications or psychotropic drugs, which are intended for insomnia, were taken within the last 2 weeks prior to baseline or during the study

Trial locations and contacts

1 site in 1 country.

Hong Kong1 site
  • Queen Mary Hospital

    Hong Kong

Other trials in Hong Kong

About this study

Official title: Acupuncture Treatment of Primary Insomnia

This is a randomized controlled trial to evaluate acupuncture treatment on insomnia in the adult population in Hong Kong.

Read the detailed description

Acupuncture is potential to be an alternative treatment for primary insomnia. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the clinical effectiveness of acupuncture treatment on primary insomnia. This is a randomized single-blinded controlled trial. Patients will be randomly assigned to the electro-acupuncture group or the placebo acupuncture group. Patients will be put into groups and then compared.

Conditions
Insomnia
Being tested
Electroacupuncture
Keywords
Insomnia, Acupuncture, Electroacupuncture, Randomized Clinical Trial, Traditional Chinese Medicine
Medical subject headings
Sleep Initiation and Maintenance Disorders

What participants receive

What participants receive. In a randomised study each person is assigned to one group by chance.

  • ElectroacupunctureOther

    Also called Acupuncture

    Acupuncture at bilateral Ear Shenmen, Sishencong EX-HN1, Anmian, and unilateral Yintang EX-HN3 and Baihui GV20. The needles will be left for 30 min and then removed. Acupuncture treatment will consist of three sessions per week for 3 consecutive weeks.

Study groups in NCT00839592
Study groupRoleWhat they receive
ElectroacupunctureExperimentalAcupoints will be treated at bilateral Ear Shenmen, Sishencong (EX-HN1), Anmian, and unilateral Yintang (EX-HN3) and Baihui (GV20). Acupuncture will be performed by a registered Chinese medicine practitioner. "De qi"(an irradiating feeling considered to be indicative of effective needling) is achieved if possible. An electric-stimulator (CEFAR Acus II, Lund, Sweden) will be connected to these needles to give an electric-stimulation in continuous wave, frequency of 4 Hz, 0.45 ms square wave pulses and constant current. The needles will be left for 30 min and then removed. Acupuncture treatment will consist of three sessions per week for 3 consecutive weeks.
Receives: Other: Electroacupuncture
Placebo AcupuncturePlacebo comparatorPlacebo needles designed by Streitberger (1998) will be used. The placebo needles are blunt needle that will not penetrate the skin during needle insertion. The handles of these placebo needles will slide over the needle when it is compressed, giving it the appearance of penetrating the skin. The placebo needles are inserted to the same acupoints as stated in the electroacupuncture group. The needles are held by a surgical tape or hair pin in hairy region to imitate the retention of needles. The needles are connected to an electric-stimulator with zero frequency and amplitude. The number, duration and frequency of the treatment sessions, and the intervention procedure will be the same for electro-acupuncture and placebo acupuncture.
Receives: Other: Electroacupuncture

What is being measured

The primary outcome is the main question the study is designed to answer.

  1. Self-rated sleep quality score measured by Insomnia Severity Index questionnaire

    Measured: Baseline, weekly during the treatment course, 1-week posttreatment

Secondary outcomes (6)
  1. Sleep parameters (sleep onset latency, sleep efficiency, total sleep time, times of wakening during sleep) by objective measure - wrist actigraphy

    Measured: Baseline, and 1-week posttreatment

  2. Sleep parameters (sleep onset latency, sleep efficiency, total sleep time, times of wakening during sleep) by subjective measures using sleep log.

    Measured: Baseline, weekly during the treatment course, and 1-week posttreatment

  3. Self-rated sleep quality score measured by the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) questionnaire

    Measured: Baseline, and 1-week posttreatment

  4. Anxiety and depression states measured by Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS)

    Measured: Baseline, and 1-week posttreatment

  5. Subjects' functioning regarding work/study, social life and family measured by Sheehan Disability Index

    Measured: Baseline, and 1-week posttreatment

  6. Subjects' credibility to the treatment measured by Credibility of treatment rating scale

    Measured: Second and the last time of the treatment

Timeline

From the start of the study to its completion; the mark is today. Estimated dates are the sponsor’s plan.

  1. First posted9 Feb 2009 (estimated)
  2. Study startJul 2006
  3. Primary completionApr 2007
  4. Study completionApr 2007

Resources

More details

For doctors and researchers: how the study is designed, who runs it, and its registry IDs.

Study design
Study type
Interventional
Phase
Phase N/A
Primary purpose
Treatment
Allocation
Randomised
Intervention model
Parallel groups
Masking
Single blind
Who is masked
Participant
Enrolment
60 participants (actual)
IDs, dates and publications
ClinicalTrials.gov ID
NCT00839592
Sponsor's protocol ID
ACUP-001
Status last verified
Jan 2010
First submitted
6 Feb 2009
Last updated
14 Jan 2010
Results posted
No
Data monitoring committee
No

Publications

  • Yeung WF, Chung KF, Yu YB, Lao L. What predicts a positive response to acupuncture? A secondary analysis of three randomised controlled trials of insomnia. Acupunct Med. 2017 Mar;35(1):24-29. doi: 10.1136/acupmed-2016-011058. Epub 2016 Aug 8.

    PubMed 27503746
  • Yeung WF, Chung KF, Zhang SP, Yap TG, Law AC. Electroacupuncture for primary insomnia: a randomized controlled trial. Sleep. 2009 Aug;32(8):1039-47. doi: 10.1093/sleep/32.8.1039.

    PubMed 19725255

Questions about this trial

What is this clinical trial studying?

A study testing Electroacupuncture in people with Insomnia, run by The University of Hong Kong at 1 site in Hong Kong.

The full registered description is in the About this study section and the official record.

Who may be eligible to take part?

The sponsor lists 7 inclusion and 9 exclusion criteria. Eligibility is decided by the study team after screening, so read the full criteria and contact a listed site.

Is this clinical trial currently recruiting?

The record says: finished, as of the sponsor's last update on 14 Jan 2010. Status can change between updates, so confirm with the study contact before making plans.

Where is the study taking place?

The record lists 1 site in Hong Kong. Whether a site is taking part right now should be confirmed with that site. See every site.

What are the possible benefits and risks?

They depend on the study and the treatment, and no study can promise a benefit. Some participants in this study may receive a placebo. The study team explains the known risks during informed consent, before anyone joins; the record itself does not list them.

Are results available for this study?

The study is completed, but results are not available in the source record. That does not mean the treatment did or did not work.

How can a doctor refer a patient or contact the research team?

The record lists no contact. The official record names the sponsor, who can be asked directly. AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals.

What does the primary outcome measure?

Self-rated sleep quality score measured by Insomnia Severity Index questionnaire (time frame: Baseline, weekly during the treatment course, 1-week posttreatment). It is what the study was designed to measure, not a finding.

Where can I read the original study information?

On the ClinicalTrials.gov record for NCT00839592, which also lists 2 linked publications.

Does a listing mean the treatment is approved or proven to work?

No. A listing means the study is registered. It does not show that the treatment is safe, works, or is approved by a regulator.

How often is this information updated?

AzTrials copies changed records from ClinicalTrials.gov every night and reloads the whole registry every week. The sponsor last updated this record on 14 Jan 2010.

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Acupuncture for Primary Insomnia (NCT00839592) | AzTrials