Brain scans reveal Acupuncture's Fast-Acting antidepressant secrets
NCT ID NCT07611487
First seen Jun 27, 2026 · Last updated Jun 27, 2026
Summary
This study looks at how acupuncture might quickly improve symptoms of depression and uses brain scans to understand why. Researchers will enroll 80 adults with mild to moderate depression who will receive acupuncture treatment. Before and after treatment, participants will have brain MRIs and complete depression questionnaires. The goal is to learn how acupuncture works in the brain and to see if brain scans can predict who will benefit most, helping to create personalized treatment plans.
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Study facts
What this study's own registry entry says, in plain language.
- Phase
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Not a phased trial
Phase numbers describe drug development. The registry uses this when they do not apply, as it does for trials of devices, procedures or behaviour changes, and for observational studies.
- Participants
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About 80 people
The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.
- Expected to start
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Jun 2026
An estimate. Start dates often move.
- Expected to finish
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Dec 2028
An estimate. End dates often move.
- Lead sponsor
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Other sponsor
The registry's catch-all category, for sponsors it does not file as a company, a government agency, or a research network.
Who can take part
This study's own entry requirements. Only the study team can say for certain whether you qualify.
- Ages
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18 to 59 years
- Sex
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Anyone
- Healthy volunteers
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Accepted
You do not need to have the condition being studied to take part.
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Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.
Inclusion Criteria: 1. Aged 18 to 59 years, and right-handed; 2. Patients who have received systematic antidepressant treatment (including antidepressant medications, sedative-hypnotics, electroconvulsive therapy, or transcranial magnetic stimulation) within the 4 weeks prior to enrollment; 3. Having a total score on the 17-item Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HAMD-17) greater than 7 and less than or equal to 24; 4. Voluntary participation in the study, with written informed consent provided by the patient themselves or their legally authorized guardian. Exclusion Criteria: 1. Diagnosis of other major psychiatric disorders or presence of psychotic symptoms. 2. History of other severe somatic diseases (e.g., cardiovascular/cerebrovascular diseases, autoimmune diseases), or current/past neurological or organic brain diseases. 3. Current or past history of alcohol dependence or abuse of other psychoactive substances. 4. Women who are lactating, pregnant, or menstruating. 5. Patients who have participated in other clinical drug trials within the past 3 months.
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Conditions
The condition(s) this trial relates to.
As listed by the trial registrant
The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.
How to take part
Only the study team decides who joins. These are the ways to reach them.
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The official record
ClinicalTrials.gov lists the study team's own contact details, including names and phone numbers. We don't republish those.
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A doctor treating you
A doctor who knows your case can contact a study site on your behalf, and can tell you whether this study is worth pursuing at all.
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Other studies related to the condition(s) this trial covers.
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