Effectiveness of auriculotherapy on anxiety during labor: a randomized clinical trial

Abstract

Objective:to evaluate the effectiveness of auriculotherapy on the anxiety of women during labor. Method:this is a randomized, parallel, triple-blind clinical trial. 102 parturients with gestational age ≥ 37 weeks, cervical dilatation ≥ 4 cm and two or more contractions in 10 min were selected and randomly assigned into three groups to receive auriculotherapy, placebo or control (routine care). Auriculotherapy was applied with crystal microspheres to the shenmen, uterus, neurasthenia area and endocrine points, and anxiety was assessed by the Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale (HAM-A). Analyzes were performed using the Kruskal-Wallis, Generalized estimating equations, Chi-square and Fisher’s exact tests. Results:the groups showed no significant difference at baseline according to the HAM-A. After the intervention there was a significant increase in HAM-A scores at 120 min in the placebo versus auriculotherapy group (mean difference (MD) 3.62, confidence interval (CI) 0.42-6.81, p=0.0265) and control versus auriculotherapy group (MD 4.88, CI 1.87-7.88, p=0.0015). Conclusion:the parturients with auriculotherapy presented lower levels of anxiety according to the HAM-A score after the treatment when compared to the women from the other groups; this can represent alternative care in obstetric practice. Registration: n. .

Efeitos da auriculoterapia sobre o estresse, ansiedade e depressão em adultos e idosos: revisão sistemática

“…As a result, 51 articles were read in full, of which 27 were excluded and 24 included in the qualitative analysis ( Figure 1). The included articles were carried out in hospitals (n = 14) (1,4,(14)(15)(16)(18)(19)(21)(22)24,(26)(27)(29)(30) , universities (n = 2) (11,16) , specialized medical centers (n = 4) (2)(3)17,27) , one non-governmental organization (n = 1) (23) , and one long-term institution (n = 1) (20) , among others (13,23) . Of these, 22 were developed in Western countries, and two in Eastern countries (24,30) .…”

“…The research sample consisted of women (n = 1412) and men (n = 403) aged between 20 and 91 years. Three of the studies (16)(17)(18) were only conducted with women; and three (2,(13)(14) did not describe the number of participants according to gender. Therefore, there was a total 265 individuals included.…”

“…A total of 22 (92%) articles showed a positive effect of auriculotherapy on stress (1,(3)(4)(14)(15)30) , anxiety (2,(11)(12)(13)(16)(17)(18)(19)20,22,(24)(25)(26)(28)(29)(30) or depression (23)(24)(25)(26)(28)(29)(30) . The main tools for measuring outcomes were: List of Symptoms of Stress (LSS) (1,4,(14)(15) , the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI) (11)(12)(17)(18)(19)(20)22,27) , and the Hamilton Anxiety and Depression Scale (24,29) .…”

“…The main lines of reasoning used in studies for auriculotherapy application were Chinese (1)(2)4,11,(13)(14)(15)(16)(17)(18)(19)(20)(24)(25)27,30) , the National Acupuncture Detoxification Association (NADA) protocol (3,(28)(29) , the French line (21,26) , The Auricular Protocol for Pain & Anxiety (APPA) (22) , and the Gold Protocol (17) . Two of the studies did not define the theoretical foundation (12,23) .…”

“…Scientific evidence points to the effects of this intervention on stress (1,(3)(4)(14)(15) , anxiety (2,(11)(12)(13)(16)(17)(18)(19)(20)(21)(22) and depression (23) in isolation or only in associating anxiety and depression (24)(25)(26)(27)(28)(29) . However, there are few studies to date which have evaluated the three outcomes together (30) .…”