Auricular acupuncture versus Cognitive behavioural Therapy for insomnia

Insomnia is a common problem among the swedish population and is most frequent for women and in groups with low socioeconomic status.

Cognitive behavioural Therapy for insomnia (CBT-i) is regarded as the best non-pharmacological treatment for insomnia, however the treatment is not suitable for everyone. The interest for complementary, non-pharmacological  therapies for insomnia has increased over the years.  Auricular acupuncture (AA) is a complementary treatment method which is used within the psychiatric care, and it has been used to some extent to reduce insomnia symptoms. It is a cost-effective treatment which is easy to implement within the primary health care and other care institutions. The scientific evidens to use AA as a stand-alone treatment for insomnia is however insufficient. The Swedish Council on Health Technology Assessment (SBU) and the Medical Products Agency in Sweden emphasise the need for more non-pharmacologic treatment for insomnia and that this area of research should be prioritised.
The puropse of this project is to compare AA to CBT-i using subjective and objective measurements, in order to see if AA has a similar effect as CBT-i in insomnia symptoms and quality of life. We also study the treatment effect of related symptoms such as symptoms of anxiety and depression as well as hypnotic consumption. With this project we hope to to contribute to extended knowledge of the field of AA for insomnia.

Staff:

Lena Bergdahl
Kristina Haglund
Jan-Erik Broman
Lars von Knorring
Anne H Berman, Inst. för klinisk neurovetenskap, Karolinska Institutet
Agneta Markström, Inst. för medicinska vetenskaper, Lung-allergi- och sömnforskning