Acupotomy at spinal acupoints for primary insomnia: an exploration of therapeutic effectiveness

To analyze the therapeutic effectiveness of acupotomy at spinal acupoints for primary insomnia (PI).

A total of 185 PI patients were divided into a control group (90 cases treated with Zolpidem Tartrate Tablets) and a research group (95 cases treated with acupotomy at spinal acupoints) based on different treatment modalities. We collected the following clinical data of patients for comparative analysis: therapeutic effectiveness, sleep quality (Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index [PSQI], Insomnia Severity Index [ISI]), hyperarousal status (Pre-Sleep Arousal Scale [PSAS], Hyperarousal Scale [HAS]), sleep-related indices (sleep latency, actual sleep duration, number of awakenings), adverse mood (Self-Rating Anxiety Scale [SAS], Beck Depression Inventory [BDI]), serum neurotransmitters (glutamic acid [GA], gamma-aminobutyric acid [GABA]), adverse reactions (postoperative pain or soreness, local hematoma or ecchymosis, dizziness or vertigo, daytime drowsiness or lethargy, nausea or stomach upset, hypomnesia), and quality of life.

The data showed that the overall response rate was significantly higher in the research group than in the control group (P<0.05). In addition, after treatment, the PSQI, ISI, PSAS, HAS scores, sleep latency, number of awakenings, SAS, BDI scores, and total adverse reaction rate in the research group were significantly lower, while the actual sleep duration, GA, and GABA levels were significantly higher (all P<0.05).

The findings confirm that acupotomy at spinal acupoints can improve the therapeutic effectiveness in patients with PI.