Tests acupuncture and escitalopram for major depression in adults
Compares acupuncture with a sham procedure in adults with major depression.
Plain-language title generated from the registry record
Registry title: Acupuncture and Escitalopram for Treating Major Depression Clinical Study
Key facts
- Where
- Shanghai, ChinaSee the 3 sites
Could this be for you?
Answer for yourself. This is not a decision: only the study team can say whether you can take part.
- Are you between 18 and 75 years old?
Source: NCT05901571, who can take part
Where in China
- Jianhua ChenShanghai, ChinaNo longer taking part
- Zhenxiang HanShanghai, ChinaNo longer taking part
- Zouqing HuangShanghai, ChinaNo longer taking part
Questions to ask the study team
- How often do I need to come in, and for how long each time?
- Are travel costs paid?
- Can I keep my own doctor?
- What happens if I want to stop?
Trial details
- Who runs it
- Shanghai 7th People's Hospital
- Trial code
- NCT05901571
- Record updated
- 11 March 2026
- Original description
We will be able to investigate in a sample of patients free of antidepressants whether acupuncture is more effective than placebo.Read full original descriptionShow less
Acupuncture and Escitalopram for Treating Major Depression Clinical Study (AE-TMDCS): Study Design of a Randomized Controlled Trial
We will be able to investigate in a sample of patients free of antidepressants whether acupuncture is more effective than placebo.
Inclusion: Between 18 and 75 years of age with no gender-based restriction; Fulfilling the diagnostic criteria of DSM-5 for major depressive disorder; A Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression (HDRS-17) score ≥ 17; Ability to read and understand Mandarin Chinese, at least nine years of education, and willingness to adhere to the study protocol; The absence of acupuncture treatment within at least 1 year; Willingness to participate in the trial and provide written informed consent for the clinical trial.
Exclusion: Previous participation in other acupuncture trials; Lifetime or current neuropsychiatric conditions, such as bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, substance dependence or abuse, dementia, brain injury, epilepsy and so forth; Medicated with antidepressant at the start of the trial or history of treatment failure to escitalopram; Known or suspected clinically unstable systemic medical disorder (including cancer, organ failure, or severe diseases of the cardiovascular, severe hepatic or renal insufficiency); 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; Pregnancy or breastfeeding; Subjects who have acute inflammation at the planned acupuncture site on the body or any other contraindication to acupuncture; Candidates afraid of needles in general and reluctant to receive acupuncture in particular.