A new acupuncture for depression study has found measurable changes in brain activity among people with major depressive disorder, adding weight to the idea that needles could serve as a useful complement to conventional treatment. The research, published in the journal Medicine, analysed brain imaging data from 357 people with major depressive disorder who received either real acupuncture or sham acupuncture, in which needles either did not penetrate or were applied at non-acupuncture points.
What the Acupuncture for Depression Study Found
Participants who received genuine acupuncture showed increased activity in the right cingulum region, linked to emotional control, and the right caudate nucleus, part of the brain’s reward system. The more sessions a person completed, the greater the change observed in the left amygdala region, which plays a role in emotional processing. Those on antidepressants, by contrast, saw activity boosts in the left hippocampus and the right middle occipital gyrus.
That contrast matters. Radiology Business reports that acupuncture-based interventions appear to elicit a distinct pattern of neuroplastic remodelling, targeting regions involved in emotion regulation and reward processing in a way that differs from the hippocampal and occipital effects seen with conventional treatments. In plain terms: acupuncture and antidepressants seem to be doing different things in the brain, which is precisely why combining them might be worth considering for some people.
Randy D’Amico, MD, neurosurgeon at Northwell’s Lenox Hill Hospital, notes that depression impacts networks involved in mood, motivation and reward. ‘Acupuncture may influence some of those same circuits, causing changes in regions involved in emotional regulation and reward processing,’ he says. He is also careful to frame what the research does and does not show: ‘The study shows changes in brain activity, not proof of permanent rewiring,’ he says, stressing that the effects observed are temporary.
Where This Sits Alongside Other Research
This is not a lone study working in isolation. A 2024 scientific review published in Frontiers in Neuroscience found that acupuncture was ‘significantly more effective’ at lowering depression scores compared with medication alone. A small 2025 study in the Journal of Affective Disorders Reports found that participants who received daily scalp acupuncture had ‘significantly better’ depression scores than those who followed their usual treatment plan.
The picture is not uniformly positive, though. A small study published in JAMA Network Open in 2023 found no difference in symptoms between people with depression who received auricular acupuncture and those who did not. That inconsistency is worth sitting with: the body of research is growing, but it is not yet conclusive.
Thea Gallagher, PsyD, clinical associate professor at NYU Langone Health, offers a grounded read on why the effects might occur. ‘There are probably multiple things happening at once,’ she says. ‘Acupuncture can be a calming, embodied experience, and if it helps someone feel less physiologically activated, sleep better, experience less pain or feel more connected to their body, all of those things can have downstream effects on mood.’
Amir Afkhami, MD, PhD, a psychiatrist and professor at The George Washington University’s Milken Institute School of Public Health, is clear that acupuncture is not a replacement for established treatment. ‘Patients should not discontinue an effective antidepressant treatment or cognitive behavioral therapy, for which there is evidence, in favor of acupuncture alone,’ he says.
Hillary Ammon, PsyD, a clinical psychologist at the Center for Anxiety and Women’s Emotional Wellness, suggests it may suit those who feel they have hit a ceiling with first-line treatments. ‘This may be good for anyone who feels they are not responding to the first-line treatments, or those that have hit a wall in progress,’ she says, recommending a conversation with a healthcare provider before making any changes.
Gallagher puts it as plainly as anyone: ‘Depression often responds best when we’re approaching it from multiple angles.’ Medication, therapy and acupuncture may each be working on different parts of the same system, which is what the brain imaging now appears to support. For those who dislike needles, Afkhami recommends regular exercise, a consistent sleep schedule, a healthy diet, limited alcohol, time outside and social contact as evidence-based additions to any treatment plan.
D’Amico captures the honest state of the field: ‘The challenge is figuring out which combination is right for each patient.’ The brain imaging research gives clinicians and patients one more thread to pull.
