There have been numerous psychological and psychiatric terms recorded in traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) bibliographies, developing a TCM specialty called mental-emotional diseases, where symptomatology, etiology, psychopathology, and various therapies are well established. Acupuncture and related therapies, such as acupressure, moxibustion, massage, cupping, scraping, psychological consultant, exercise therapy (e.g., tai-qi), meditation, and mindfulness were often used in the management of mental disease and wellbeing in early days. These therapies also have been increasingly introduced into today’s clinical practice of psychiatry, aiming to enhance the clinical efficacy, reduce side effects associated with conventional treatment, and comorbid symptoms. Over the past two decades, the speaker and other researchers have published a large number of clinical trials that have demonstrated the effectiveness of acupuncture in the treatment of insomnia, depression, anxiety, obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD), cognitive impairment, drug abuse, and psychotic disorders. Neuroimaging, neurochemical, and omic evidence further reveals the underlying mechanisms of psychotropic effects of acupuncture. This talk will provide an overview of ancient TCM psychological concepts and therapies, evidence-based findings obtained from preclinical and clinical studies, and the putative mechanisms of acupuncture effects in the treatment of psychological and mental diseases.

Keywords: Acupuncture, mental disease, clinical trial, TCM