Efficacy of manual acupuncture versus placebo acupuncture for generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) in perimenopause women: study protocol for a randomized controlled trial

BACKGROUND: Generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) is common among perimenopausal women. Acupuncture may be an effective treatment for GAD, but evidence is limited. The pathogenesis of GAD is not yet clear, but it is related to the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis and its excretion, cortisol (CORT), and adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH). The object of this study is to evaluate the efficacy of manual acupuncture (MA) versus placebo acupuncture (PA) for perimenopausal women with GAD. METHODS: This study is a single-center, randomized, single-blind clinical trial that will be conducted in the First Affiliated Hospital of Guangzhou University of Chinese Medicine. A total of 112 eligible GAD patients will be randomly assigned (1:1) to receive MA (n=56) or PA (n=56) three times per week for 4 weeks. The primary outcome measure will be the HAMA score. The secondary outcome measures will be the GAD-7 and PSQI scores and the levels of CORT and ACTH. The evaluation will be executed at baseline, 2 weeks, the end of the treatment, and a follow-up 3-month period. All main analyses will be carried out based on the intention-to-treat (ITT) principle. DISCUSSION: This study intends to compare the efficacy between MA and PA in the treatment of perimenopausal women with GAD and to further study the mechanisms underlying the effect. TRIAL REGISTRATION: Chinese Clinical Trial Registry ChiCTR2100046604. Registered on 22 May 2021.