Posted on 23 April 2008

A systematic review of current literature conducted by authors from Hong Kong has concluded that auricular acupuncture appears to be effective for treating insomnia. Eight hundred and seventy eight (878) papers were searched of which only six trials (402 people treated with AA among 673 total participants) were deemed of high enough methodological quality to meet the inclusion criteria. The recovery and improvement rates produced by AA were found to be significantly higher than those of diazepam. The efficacy of using Semen vaccariae ear seeds was better than that of controls while use of magnetic beads did not show statistical significance. Six commonly used auricular acupoints were Shenmen (100%), Heart (83.33%), Occiput (66.67%), Subcortex (50%), Brain and Kidney (each 33.33%, respectively). The authors recommend that further, better-designed trials be carried out.

(Auricular acupuncture treatment for insomnia: a systematic review. J Altern Complement Med. 2007 Jul-Aug;13(6):669-76).

Categories: Acupuncture, Insomnia