Effectiveness of Acupuncture for Depressed Patients Not Taking Antidepressant Medications

Acupuncture is a popular complementary/alternative therapy that has been in use for thousands of years for the treatment of various medical and psychiatric conditions, including Major Depressive Disorder (MDD). In this study, the investigators applied the investigators acupuncture-treatment-for-depression protocol, based on Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) principles for treating MDD, to depressed patients not taking any antidepressant medications (a protocol that the investigators previously piloted as a medication augmentation therapy for partial responders with MDD). The investigators specifically investigated the efficacy, safety, and tolerability of this TCM-based protocol for such patients, as well as potential differences in outcomes between weekly vs. twice-weekly treatment. The investigators hypothesized that acupuncture monotherapy would be associated with a response rate of at least 50%, which the investigators defined as a decrease in depressive symptoms from the beginning to the end of the study of 50% or more, and that the response would be greater among patients who received acupuncture 2 times per week (vs. 1 time per week). The investigators also hypothesized that acupuncture would be associated with minimal side effects.