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NCT Number: NCT06922565

Efficacy of Acupuncture in the Treatment of Moderate-to-severe Atopic Dermatitis

This study used a multicentre parallel three-armed randomised sham-controlled clinical trial methodology in order to objectively and normatively assess the efficacy of acupuncture on Quchi the Sea of Blood the Foot Sanli and the Sanyinjiao in the treatment of moderate-to-severe atopic dermatitis so as to obtain high-level evidence-based medical evidence.

This study adopts a multi-centre, parallel, three-armed, randomized, sham-controlled clinical trial method, and will be conducted at Yueyang Hospital of Integrative Medicine affiliated with Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Huashan Hospital affiliated with Fudan University, and Seventh People's Hospital affiliated with Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine. Eligible patients with moderate-to-severe AD will be divided into three groups using stratified block randomisation in the ratio of 2:2:1: the acupuncture group, the sham-acupuncture group and the waitlisted control group. The total observation period is 9 weeks, including a 1-week introduction period, a 4-week treatment period and a 4-week follow-up period.

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Key information

Conditions

Atopic Dermatitis Congenital, Hereditary, and Neonatal Diseases and Abnormalities Dermatitis Dermatitis, Atopic Genetic Diseases, Inborn Hypersensitivity Hypersensitivity, Immediate Immune System Diseases Skin Diseases Skin Diseases, Eczematous Skin Diseases, Genetic Skin and Connective Tissue Diseases

Age range

18 year–75 year

Sex eligibility

All sexes

Study type

Interventional

Phase

Not applicable

Who can participate

Healthy volunteers accepted: No

Only the study team can determine whether someone qualifies for participation.

Inclusion criteria

  • Meet the diagnostic criteria for moderate to severe atopic dermatitis;
  • Age ≥18 and ≤75 years old gender is not limited; ③ Peak Pruritus Numerical Rating Scale (PP-NRS) score ≥4; ④ Voluntarily participate in this trial and sign the informed consent form.

Exclusion criteria

  • Patients who are in the acute onset of the disease and have erosions exudates and secondary infections;
  • Patients who have participated in other clinical studies in the past 3 months or are participating in other clinical studies; ③ Patients with severe haematological diseases (e.g. platelet count <50×109 /L) and other serious diseases that may affect operation and efficacy;
  • Current systematic use of glucocorticosteroids discontinued for less than 7 days; immunosuppressants (cyclosporine methotrexate tretinoin etc.) discontinued for less than 1 month; dulprevirizumab discontinued for less than 1 month JAK inhibitors discontinued for less than 2 weeks;
  • Women who are pregnant or breastfeeding; ⑥ Patients with a history of acupuncture treatment.

Treatment and study plan

acupuncture

Device

Subjects in the acupuncture group received traditional acupuncture. The needles were inserted to induce a sense of 'getting qi' and left in place for 30 minutes.

Sham acupuncture

Device

Sterile disposable retractable needles and a fake placebo acupuncture device are used for sham acupuncture. The acupuncturist attached the base of the sham acupuncture device to the acupoints, and then inserted sterile disposable blunt-tipped retractable needles into the tubes; when the blunt tips touched the skin, the needles retracted into the handles, and there was no sensation of getting qi.

Primary outcomes

  1. SCORing atopic dermatitis（SCORAD）

    Time frame: This indicator will be measured at baseline day 1 (V2), day 27 ± 1 (V9), and day 56 ± 3 (V10).

    SCORAD range of 0 ~ 103 points.The condition is classified as mild, moderate or severe according to the score, with the higher the score, the more severe the condition.

Secondary outcomes

  1. Patient Oriented Eczema Measure (POEM)

    Time frame: This indicator will be measured at baseline day 1 (V2), day 27 ± 1 (V9), and day 56 ± 3 (V10).

    Patients themselves assessed the frequency and severity of 7 symptoms occurring in the past 1 week, with each entry on a 5-point scale corresponding to a score of 0, 1, 2, 3, and 4. Scores ranged from 0 ~ 28, with higher scores indicating greater severity.

  2. Dermatology Life Quality Index（DLQI）

    Time frame: This indicator will be measured at baseline day 1 (V2), day 27 ± 1 (V9), and day 56 ± 3 (V10).

    The questionnaire contains 10 questions. Scores range from 0 to 30, with higher scores indicating a greater impact on quality of life.

  3. Peak Pruritus Numerical Rating Scale（PP-NRS）

    Time frame: This indicator will be measured at baseline day 1 (V2), day 27 ± 1 (V9), and day 56 ± 3 (V10).

    The PP-NRS is a patient self-report, with a score of 0 for no itching and 10 for the worst itching imaginable, with the patient scoring the worst itching experienced in the last 24 h. The PP-NRS is a patient self-report, with a score of 0 for no itching and 10 for the worst itching imaginable.

  4. Skin Peripheral sympathetic nerve activity (SKNA)

    Time frame: This indicator will be measured at baseline day 1 (V2), day 27 ± 1 (V9).

    Measured with neuECG, SKNA in µV

  5. Serum total IgE

    Time frame: This indicator will be measured at baseline day 1 (V2), day 27 ± 1 (V9).

  6. Peripheral blood serum cytokines（IL-4,IL-13,IL-31,IL-33,INF-α）

    Time frame: This indicator will be measured at baseline day 1 (V2), day 27 ± 1 (V9).

Sponsors and collaborators

Lead sponsor

Shanghai Yueyang Integrated Medicine Hospital

Other

Registry information

Official study title

Efficacy of Acupuncture in the Treatment of Moderate-to-severe Atopic Dermatitis: a Multicentre Randomised Sham-controlled Clinical Trial

Important dates

Study start
2025
Primary completion
2026
Study completion
2026
First posted
Apr 10, 2025
Registry last updated
Apr 10, 2025

OpenTrials presents study information sourced from ClinicalTrials.gov. The official registry record should be consulted for the latest information.

View the official ClinicalTrials.gov record (opens in a new tab)

This listing is for discovery and informational purposes only. It is not medical advice, does not guarantee that a study is recruiting, and does not determine eligibility. Contact the study team and a qualified healthcare professional when considering participation.

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