In this review, there will only be research included that classifies depression as a mental disability among adults. In these studies, depression is handled as a illness that requires proper treatment to overcome. Besides the use of pharmaceutical drugs an alternative type of therapies, such as acupuncture, can be used to help suppress and resolve these taxing symptoms of depression. When looking at the criteria that would be used for this study, it was determined that only studies that contain Eastern acupuncture would be used. This includes the methods of cupping, heat lamp acupuncture, electrical stimulation and moxa. It was also determined that studies that focused on human trials would be allowed. This systematic review only includes CINAHL …show more content…
and Pubmed databases that resulted in 458 and 398 articles respectively using the search terms: acupuncture, depression, and adults and excluded any articles published more than ten years ago and were not human research based. These exclusions were chosen because the goal of the statistics and knowledge comprising this systematic review need to be up to date and any studies that are non-human related would not be as relatable as a true human study to analyze. In a three arm pragmatic randomized control trial, patients were gathered to be interviewed and referred to an acupuncturist based on their depression symptoms.
After which, they were then assessed to find how the depression symptoms were affected. “This trial was designed to evaluate whether referral of people who had consulted in primary care with depression, yet continued to be depressed, and were seeking alternatives would benefit or not from a referral to acupuncturists who practised in the style of traditional Chinese medicine” (MacPherson, 2013). The participants were required to be between the ages of eighteen and seventy and have been diagnosed with depression. Depression is defined by the Western diagnostic criteria of depression. Trials were excluded if the participants were under the age of eighteen, had any other mental illnesses besides depression and had any form or epilepsy, serious heart problems or liver or kidney problems. They were also excluded if the participant had been involved with any other clinical trial for depression or if they were a pregnant woman. The acupuncturist were assessed by a qualified individual from the British Acupuncture Council that had at least three years of experience using traditional chinese medicine technique. The acupuncturist provided anywhere up to twelve sessions with the patient, usually once a week and the acupuncture points were determined by the patient’s needs initially assessed in the beginning interview. From this point, patient results were assessed and statistically documented using SPSS 20 (MacPherson,
2013). A meta - analysis that combined the results of several studies conducted on electroacupuncture combined with selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors and its effects on depression symptoms. The meta - analysis only included human subjects and all age group participants that only had depression, no other occurring diseases at the time of the study. The analysis was done by two separate investigators who used methods to determine how effective and safe the studies conducted were. The effectiveness and safety of the studies were rated based on scores from the Hamilton Depression Scale (HAMD) to determine a participant’s level of reaction, remission, and guide for research (Ruhe, 2005), Self-Rated Depression Scale (SDS) to determine the level of depression a participant felt they experienced, the Side Effect Rating Scale (SERS) to determine the side effects felt by the participants undergoing treatment, and the Treatment Emergent Symptom Scale (TESS).
Liu, F., Li, Z., Jiang, Y., & Chen, L. (2014). A meta-analysis of acupuncture use in the treatment of cognitive impairment after stroke. The Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine, 20(7), 535-544.
Mendelson G, Selwood TS, Kranz H, Loh TS, Kidson MA, Scott Ds. (1983). Acupuncture treatment of chronic back pain. A double-blind placebo-controlled trial. Journal of Medicine, 741), 49-55.
The Chinese healing art of acupuncture is one that can be dated back at least two thousand years. Some authorities maintain that acupuncture has been practiced in China for even four thousand years. Though its exact age is vague, what is certain is that up until the recent twentieth century, much of the population of the world was uninformed about acupuncture, its origins, and its capacity to promote and maintain good health. Even today in relatively "advanced" nations such as the United States there are many who hold acupuncture under the stereotype of a new or radical medicine, one which would almost always be a second choice after more familiar Western approaches to handling illness.
These alternative treatments include acupuncture, meditation, and therapy among many others.There is growing evidence that the desire for alternative medicine is expanding because people undergoing procedures in today’s health care system has had unmet needs as well as feelings of being uncared for (Acari & Flanagan, 2015). Alternative medicine is able to provide patients with treatments that provide relief for hard to cure problems such as back pain, neck pain, and arthritis. Many of these alternative treatments have been shown to be successful for various problems. The use of complimentary and alternative medicine as well as the open ended communication that holistic nursing provides is gaining popularity from patients who are fed up with traditional care and hospital
Complementary and alternative therapies are relatively new and essential options in health care, they help to increase the quality of life of patients and provide them with numerous possibilities to ensure growth of their health, beyond current medicine. Recently, these therapies, such as massage therapy and acupuncture, have become more prevalent in research. Consequently, their substitution with standard medicine in the healthcare system has been supported by the literature. The literature that supports these methods has explored why complementary therapies are needed, the different and distinct features of each therapy, and they also examine the education and knowledge those implementing the services must have. To accurately analyze if complementary and alternative therapies are valuable to the health care system, this paper will aim to learn why they are becoming predominant and why nurses should use these therapies’ to assist in improving the health of individuals. To determine the main attributes of these therapies, a variety of resources that extensively discuss complementary and alternative therapies will be examined and the paper will also examine the benefits and weaknesses they have on improving health. Lastly, this paper will aim to determine if these services should be implemented by nurses as alternative options for their patients, as nurses should have substantial knowledge pertaining to implementing these therapies.
Simpson, C. (2007) ‘Mental Health part3: Assessment and Treatment of Depression’ British Journal of Healthcare assistants. pp 167-171.
The mental health assessment is a crucial part in everyday nursing care as it evaluates an individual’s mental condition to assess for risk factors of mental illnesses and provide optimal care and treatment. Mental health is described as “a state of well-being in which the individual realizes his or her own abilities, can cope with the normal stresses of life, can work productively and fruitfully, and is able to make a contribution to his or her community.” (CDC) If the patient not mentally healthy, they can develop mentally illnesses, which can affect treatment and the disease process of physical ailments because without mental health a person cannot be completely healthy. “Suicide Risk Assessment in High Risk Adolescents” is a nursing article that outlines suicide risk factors and prevention strategies for assist nurses in performing mental health assessments. Suicide, the act of
2008 performed a study that assessed the efficacy of acupuncture in migraine prophylaxis (Alecrim-Andrade et al., 2008). Thirty- seven patients with migraines were enrolled in the study and the patients were divided into two groups in a randomized controlled trial. One group received 16 real acupuncture sessions over a period of three months while the other group received 16 sham acupuncture over the same time period (Alecrim-Andrade et al., 2008). In the first two months, real acupuncture group showed significant improvement compared with the sham acupuncture group (Alecrim-Andrade et al., 2008). Enthrallingly, the difference that existed between sham and real acupuncture groups disappeared in the third (last) month suggesting that with time, sham acupuncture gets to the efficacy level of real acupuncture. Another complementing study performed by Bäcker et al. 2008 investigated the influence of acupuncture on the autonomic system of migraineurs (Bäcker et al., 2008). Researchers monitored changes in heart rate variability during acupuncture treatment in thirty migraineurs. These migraineurs were allocated to two groups receiving either verum acupuncture (VA) or sham acupuncture (SA) treatment (Bäcker et al., 2008). The study revealed that in both VA and SA groups, there was at least 50% reduction of migraine attacks. In addition, the clinical responders exhibited a decrease of low-frequency power of heart rate variability in the course of the treatment. This effect was not observed in patients without clinical benefit (Bäcker et al., 2008). Although VA compared with SA induced a stronger decrease of high- frequency power, mode of acupuncture however, did not have an impact on clinical outcome (Bäcker et al.,
Orthodox medicine and Complementary and Alternative medicine (CAM) are used widely across the globe today. Acupuncture is a complementary medical practice which is used to improve many health conditions and its origins, method and uses in health care are explored and outlined. Although orthodox medicine is the dominant model in the United Kingdom (UK) the popularity of CAM is increasing as more and more people begin to choose CAM instead of, or along with orthodox medicine. There are many reasons for this and this is resulting in CAM being taken more seriously as more doctors and nurses are being trained in complementary and alternative therapies such as massage and acupuncture. Although people do use CAM it is evident that more research and trials need to be done to prove the efficiency and reliability of CAM as a treatment.
Acupuncture doesn’t allow people to get ahead of themselves like Victor did; the way of thinking brought about is that of a natural sense. The techniques of the alternative medicine allow people to remember how magnificent and sacred the human body is and realize that it cannot be created through lab work or perfected through medicine. With Western medicine, patients can take up to four or five medications before finding one that suits their needs and most can have many life threatening side effects. With acupuncture, it is one procedure and one attempt to heal a patient with NO major side effects. Acupuncture is a unique ancient art that is backed by thousands of years of Chinese thought and research and has been proven affective for many people and their illnesses.
Since the 1800s, treatment methods for mental illness have developed significantly worldwide. From electrotherapy to modern practices like psychotherapy, treatment for mental disorders has greatly progressed as scientists and psychologists learn more information on the causes of mental illness and the best therapy for each particular disease. The past 200 years mark the most defined era since the beginning of humans for the progression of treatment for mental illness. Not only has treatment improved for the mentally ill, but also the perception of mental illness has greatly changed and will continue to do so as more is learned about the human mind.
In Chinese medicine, the health benefits of acupuncture are well known, and it seems most Western cultures have only caught in the past 50 years or so. Acupuncture can serve as a stand-alone medical treatment, or it can function as a complementary treatment to traditional medicine. Either way, the benefits are clear, and there are virtually no side effects. To decide if acupuncture is the right treatment for any patient, consulting with the general practice physician is critical. They should point in the direction of a qualified acupuncturist with ease if the need
Traditional Eastern medical practices such as acupuncture have long been used in the East to unblock stagnant energy in the body that may cause the symptoms of conditions such as depression. The philosophy behind acupuncture is rooted in the Daoist tradition which goes back over 8000 years. The people of this time would meditate and observe the flow of energy in the universe. Acupuncture adds value here as an effective alternative
Acupuncture A Chinese medical technique, acupuncture, is a medicine originating in the orient over four-thousand years ago. Used primarily for pain relief, but also in curing disease and general health improvement. Oriental Medicine views illness and pain as an imbalance of one's energy. With Acupuncture the energetic balance can be restored, thus helping the body to rid itself of disease. Often illnesses can be diagnosed and treated at an early stage.
Mental health refers to the state of individuals psychologically, emotionally and socially. Mental health affects a person’s emotions, feelings, thoughts, and sections when exposed to different situations. Furthermore, mental health is responsible for a person’s reaction to stress and other social conditions. Generally, mental health affects how a person relates to others and their ability to understand and interact with them. Therefore, problems that affect a person’s mental health affect the abilities to socialize, their feelings, moods, reaction to situations. The person experiencing mental health problem may portray different behaviors when confronted with different issues. Mental health issues have several