Den här översättningen är inte klar ännu. Den här sidan är just nu på engelska.

Gå till den engelska sidan

Cure My Disease

Don't miss your cure!

 Log in / Sign up

Acupuncture vs. antidepressants: new study tests a Needle-Based cure for depression

NCT ID NCT05901571

Symptom relief Sponsor: Shanghai 7th People's Hospital Source: ClinicalTrials.gov ↗

What the study statuses mean

This study's is highlighted.

Recruitment status, easiest to join first

Recruiting now
This trial is taking on new participants right now.
Not yet recruiting This study
Registered, but not yet taking participants.
By invitation only
Not open to general applications. Only people the study team invites can take part.
Paused
Paused for now. It may or may not start again.
Ongoing
Running, but no longer taking on new participants.
Completed
The trial has finished. Results may not be published yet.
Stopped early
Stopped early, before it reached the end. That can be for many reasons, including safety.
Cancelled
Cancelled before anyone took part.

Expanded access (not trials)

Expanded access
Not a trial. This treatment can be requested outside a study, case by case, for people who qualify.
Expanded access (paused)
Not a trial. The treatment can normally be requested outside a study, but is unavailable right now.
Expanded access (ended)
Not a trial. The treatment could once be requested outside a study, but no longer can.
Approved
The treatment has been approved, so it is available normally rather than through this programme.

When the status isn't known

Details not published
The full record has not been published yet, so there is little to show here.
Status unknown
This status has not been confirmed recently, so it may be out of date.

First seen Jun 27, 2026 · Last updated Jun 27, 2026

Summary

This study aims to see if acupuncture is more effective than a placebo for treating major depression. Researchers will compare acupuncture to the antidepressant escitalopram in 216 adults who are not currently taking any depression medication. The goal is to find out if this ancient practice can offer real relief for people with depression.

This is an AI summary of the original study and may miss details. Read our disclaimer.

Study facts

What this study's own registry entry says, in plain language.

Phase

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

About 216 people

The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.

Expected to start

Nov 2026

An estimate. Start dates often move.

Expected to finish

Feb 2030

An estimate. End dates often move.

Lead sponsor

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

18 to 75 years

Sex

Anyone

Healthy volunteers

Not accepted

This study is not open to healthy volunteers. The entry requirements below say who it is open to.

Show the full entry requirements

Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.

Inclusion Criteria: 1. Between 18 and 75 years of age with no gender-based restriction. 2. Fulfilling the diagnostic criteria of DSM-5 for major depressive disorder. 3. A Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression (HDRS-17) score ≥ 17 4. Ability to read and understand Mandarin Chinese, at least nine years of education, and willingness to adhere to the study protocol. 5. The absence of acupuncture treatment within at least 1 year. 6. Willingness to participate in the trial and provide written informed consent for the clinical trial. Exclusion Criteria: 1. Lifetime or current neuropsychiatric conditions, such as bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, substance dependence or abuse, dementia, brain injury, epilepsy and so forth. 2. High suicide risk or presenting with suicidal ideation (a score of more than 2 points on the Suicide question of the HDRS-17) at the time of entry. 3. Medicated with antidepressant at the start of the trial or history of treatment failure to escitalopram. 4. Pregnancy or breastfeeding. 5. Subjects who have acute inflammation at the planned acupuncture site on the body or any other contraindication to acupuncture. 6. Candidates afraid of needles in general and reluctant to receive acupuncture in particular 7. Known or suspected clinically unstable systemic medical disorder (including cancer, organ failure, or severe diseases of the cardiovascular, severe hepatic or renal insufficiency). 8. Previous participation in other acupuncture trials.

Get updates

Get notified about this study

Sign up to get updates when this study changes or when new studies for Depressive disorder, major are added.

Vår säkerhetsrekommendation!

Genom att skicka in godkänner du våra Användarvillkor

Conditions

The condition(s) this trial relates to.

major depressive disorder

As listed by the trial registrant

The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.

Depressive disorder, major

How to take part

Only the study team decides who joins. These are the ways to reach them.

  1. The places running it

    3 sites. The list below names each one and where it is.

  2. The official record

    ClinicalTrials.gov lists the study team's own contact details, including names and phone numbers. We don't republish those.

    Open the record ↗

  3. 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.

Contacts and locations

Locations

  • Jianhua Chen

    Shanghai, Shanghai Municipality, 200030, China

  • Zhenxiang Han

    Shanghai, Shanghai Municipality, 200137, China

  • Zouqing Huang

    Shanghai, Shanghai Municipality, China

More trials for these conditions

Other studies related to the condition(s) this trial covers.