Objective: To compare the therapeutic effects of evening-electroacupuncture (EA) and morning-EA for insomnia.
Methods: Sixty cases of simple insomnia patients were randomly divided into evening-EA group and morning-EA group, with 30 cases in each. EA (2/100 Hz, 1-3 mA) was applied to Baihui (GV 20), Shenting (GV 24), Touwei (ST 8), Shenmen (HT 7), Sanyinjiao (SP 6), etc. in the evening (8:00-9:00 pm) and in the morning (8:00-11:00 am) respectively in two groups, once daily for 10 times. Changes of mean global Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI), sleep rate, frequency of hypnotic-taking, etc were observed before and after the treatment.
Results: In comparison with pre-treatment, mean PSQI scores in evening-EA and morning-EA groups, and hypnotic-taking frequency in evening-EA group decreased evidently during two weeks after the treatment, and sleep rates of two groups increased significantly from the 1st day on after the treatment in evening-EA group and from the 1st week on in morning-EA group (P<0.01). Comparison between two groups showed that the mean PSQI scores at the 1st and 2nd week in evening-EA group were significantly lower, and the sleep rate in evening-EA group on the 2nd week after the treatment was considerably higher than that in morning-EA group (P<0.05).
Conclusion: Evening-EA can significantly lower insomnia patients' PSQI score, raise sleep rate, and reduce the hypnotic-taking frequency. Evening-EA is superior to morning-EA in the treatment of insomnia.