Abstract
Background: Depression is a common psychiatric disorder. Many depressed patients do not respond fully to current medications. Acupuncture has been widely used as an add-on treatment for depression. However, how acupuncture works to produce its antidepressant effect has not been understood fully. Objective: This article discusses possible mechanisms underlying the effects of acupuncture in ameliorating depressive symptoms in correlation with theories of depression. Methods: PubMed and Google Scholar were used to search for original and review articles with the following keywords: acupuncture AND depression; acupuncture AND monoamine; acupuncture AND BDNF; acupuncture AND inflammation; acupuncture AND cytokine; and stress AND depression. Results: Various kinds of evidence showed that acupuncture might be beneficial for treating depression via modulation of the central monoaminergic system, the hypothalmic–pituitary–adrenal axis, brain neurotrophin, and the neuroimmune system. Conclusion: Multiple pathways seem to be involved in the mechanism of action of acupuncture, and these mechanisms may work together to produce the antidepressant effects of acupuncture.
Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
