SOOJI CHIM (Koryo hand acupuncture) for perimenopausal insomnia: Evidence from actigraphy and serum hormone testing

Objective: This study is conducted to determine the effects of SOOJI CHIM (Koryo hand acupuncture, KHA) therapy on sleep structures and perimenopause symptoms among insomniacs.Methods: Totally 49 participants who met the inclusion criteria were enrolled in a two-arm randomized, placebo controlled, patients-blind trial, with 24 cases allocated to a real-KHA group and 25 cases allocated to a sham-KHA group. Patients in each group received corresponding treatment every other day, three times a week for total eight weeks. Both actigraphy and testing of serum hormones level reflected by biological markers such as follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH), luteinizing hormone (LH) and estradiol (E-2) were performed at pre- and post-treatment. Additionally, the scores of Pittsburgh sleep quality index (PSQI) was used for assessing the subjective sleep experience of insomniacs. Meanwhile, adverse effects were monitored and recorded.Results: After eight-week treatment, the global scores of PSQI declined significantly (P<0.05) in the real-KHA group but not in the sham-KHA group (P>0.05). According to the outcomes of actigraphy, a striking increase was observed in both sleep efficiency (SE) and total sleep time (TST) in the real-KHA group (both P<0.05) but not in the sham-KHA group (P>0.05). However, no significant changes of sleep awakenings (SA) in both groups was found after treatment (both P>0.05). Meanwhile, FSH and LH in the real-KHA group decreased markedly after intervention (both P<0.05) while those indicators only slightly changed in the sham-KHA group (P>0.05). The fluctuation of E-2 levels were not significant in both groups (both P>0.05). No serious adverse event was reported in either real- or sham- KHA group.Conclusion: KHA may be a potential alternative therapy for improving perimenopausal insomnia via down regulating the levels of FSH and LH. (C) 2019 Published by Elsevier B.V. on behalf of World Journal of Acupuncture Moxibustion House.