EFFECTIVENESS OF AN ACUPUNCTURE-BASED PROTOCOL IN THE TREATMENT OF SUBSTANCE USE DISORDER AND DEPRESSION COMORBID: A RANDOMIZED SINGLE-BLIND CONTROLLED STUDY

Introduction: There is a lack of alternatives studies for substance use disorder (SUD) and comorbid depression (CD) symptoms. This is a randomized single-blind controlled study that aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of an acupuncture-based protocol for SUD and CD symptoms. Methods: The final sample (N=20) was randomized into experimental group (EG) or control group (CG). The EG received the protocol of 12 needles and the CG received sham acupuncture protocol, without seeking therapeutic purpose. Participants were evaluated during the screening by five instruments: Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale-21, Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT), Drug Abuse Screening Test (DAST-10), Brazilian Economic Classification Criteria and a sociodemographic questionnaire. The intervention was performed in eight sessions, once a week, for two months. Participants were evaluated both before and after the intervention and after one-month follow-up. All procedures followed the national ethical standards committees on human experimentation and Helsinki Declaration and was registered in the Brazilian Clinical Trials Registry (ReBEC) for experimental studies. Results: inter and intra-group analysis showed significant reduction in the symptoms of anxiety (p<0.001), stress (p<0.001), depression (p<0.001) and a significant reduction in AUDIT (p<0.001) and DAST-10 (p<0.001) scores. Conclusions: the acupuncture-protocol was effective in reducing alcohol or other drugs related problems and symptoms of depression, anxiety and stress among individuals with SUD and depressive symptoms comorbid. This protocol may be an alternative treatment in public health field to people who do not adhere to traditional method.