Efficacy of acupuncture at ghost points combined with fluoxetine in treating depression: A randomized study

Table 5 Comparison of plasma adrenocorticotropic hormone, Cor and corticotropin-releasing hormone levels before and after treatment in the two groups

Group	n	ACTH (ng/L)		Cor (ng/L)		CRH (ng/L)
		Before treatment	8 wk of treatment	Before treatment	8 wk of treatment	Before-treatment	8 wk of treatment
Acupuncture group	80	38.74 ± 7.20	28.64 ± 5.51a	122.64 ± 14.81	98.13 ± 11.77a	132.85 ± 17.20	112.69 ± 12.54a
Fluoxetine group	80	40.01 ± 8.14	31.47 ± 7.08a	120.28 ± 16.57	105.25 ± 13.60a	130.51 ± 15.83	116.11 ± 14.38a
t value		-1.045	-2.821	0.950	-3.541	0.895	-1.603
P value		0.297	0.005	0.344	0.001	0.372	0.111

^aP < 0.05 vs this group before treatment.

ACTH: Adrenocorticotropic hormone; CRH: Corticotropin-releasing hormone.