Russia’s Health Ministry has officially included electropuncture and brain electrostimulation in the updated standard of care for depression in adults. The relevant document was published on the official legal acts portal in September 2026, expanding the range of available non-drug methods for treating and preventing depression.
Updated standard of care for depression
For the first time, the new standard of care for depression in adults includes electropuncture and brain electrostimulation among the recommended non-drug methods. These procedures complement existing approaches such as hypoxic therapy and low-intensity laser therapy with intravenous blood irradiation.
The document, published on the official legal acts website, highlights the importance of a comprehensive approach to treating depression, including various physiotherapy procedures, which may improve treatment effectiveness and reduce reliance on medication.
Why electropuncture and electrostimulation matter
Electropuncture is a method that uses electrical impulses on acupuncture points to improve neurotransmission and regulate emotional state. Electro-neurostimulation targets specific areas of the brain to normalize nervous system activity.
Psychiatrist Nadezhda Solovyova has previously noted the high effectiveness of electroconvulsive therapy and plasmapheresis, supporting the promise of physiotherapy methods—now supplemented by electropuncture and electro-neurostimulation—in treating depression in adult patients.
Changes to drug therapy
The new standard has also removed several drugs from the list of medications used to treat depression, including the phenothiazine derivatives prom in and thioridazine, as well as chlorprothixene, olanzapine, and imipramine. This follows a reassessment of their effectiveness and safety in current clinical practice.
Discontinuing these drugs may encourage doctors and patients to use safer, more innovative non-drug methods such as electropuncture, potentially reducing the risk of side effects and improving patients’ quality of life.
Economic and social context
Introducing electropuncture and electro-neurostimulation into depression treatment standards may affect the structure of healthcare spending.
In addition, expanding non-drug treatment options can help reduce the overall burden on psychiatric hospitals and improve patient rehabilitation—an important factor in making healthcare more effective in Russia.
Implementation prospects and the development of treatment
The official inclusion of electropuncture in treatment standards will open up new opportunities for medical facilities in regions where such methods have not previously been used. Training specialists and purchasing the necessary equipment could begin as early as the fourth quarter of 2026.
The Health Ministry plans to monitor the effectiveness of the new methods over the next two years, allowing it to assess their impact on patient recovery and adapt future depression treatment standards in Russia.
Bottom line: The Health Ministry has officially recognized electropuncture and electro-neurostimulation as effective non-drug treatments for depression in adults.