Biological Correlates of the Effects of Auricular Point Acupressure on Pain

Yeh, Chao Hsing; Lukkahatai, Nada; Huang, Xinran; Wu, Hulin; Wang, Hongyu; Zhang, Jingyu; Sun, Xinyi; Smith, Thomas J.

doi:10.1016/j.pmn.2022.11.004

Cited by 5 publications

(2 citation statements)

References 53 publications

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“…[ 32 ] Another research showed that auricular acupressure can modulate inflammatory factors for analgesic purposes. [ 33 ] Overall, acupuncture is therapeutically free of significant side effects, but patients’ fear of needling may lead to decreased acceptance and affect treatment effects. Auricular acupressure is a noninvasive and low-cost technique.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Global research trends in acupuncture for cancer pain: A bibliometric analysis

Yang,

Liang,

Xue

et al. 2023

Medicine

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Background: In recent years, acupuncture has gained popularity in the management of cancer-related pain (CRP). This study aims to use bibliometric analysis to investigate the historical development, recent hotspots and research trends in this field. Methods: The Web of Science Core Collection database was selected as the data source for this study to retrieve and obtain literature related to acupuncture and CRP. Data analyses were performed with CiteSpace and VOSviewer to conduct the bibliometric analysis. Results: This bibliometric analysis was conducted from 2000 to 2022. A total of 664 publications were included in this work. The number of publications has steadily increased over the last 2 decades. The United States has the largest number of published articles (244 papers), while the People’s Republic of China has the highest centrality (0.48). The primary research institutions were Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, Kyung Hee University and Beijing University of Chinese Medicine. Mao Jun J. was the most prolific author, while Heather Greenlee was the most cited one. The most productive journal was Integrative Cancer Therapies. The most frequent keywords excluding the search subject were “electroacupuncture,” “management,” “quality of life,” “breast cancer,” “Aromatase inhibitor,” “neuropathic pain,” “mechanisms,” and “protocol.” Conclusion: This study explored the application value of acupuncture in the management of CRP with bibliometric analysis, offering an intuitive understanding of this topic and revealing the hotspots and research trends.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Global research trends in acupuncture for cancer pain: A bibliometric analysis

Yang,

Liang,

Xue

et al. 2023

Medicine

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“…21,22 Accumulated extensive evidence has demonstrated the effects of APA on pain. [23][24][25][26] Evidence of APA as pain relief points to several potential biological mechanisms: (1) direct (ie, stimulation of trigeminal and vagus nerve innervation distributed on the ear) or indirect effects (eg, ear point stimulation as a conscious behavior) 27 , (2) modulation of inflammatory cytokine levels (decreased proinflammatory cytokines [IL-1β, IL-6, TNF-α]) or stimulation to release anti-inflammatory cytokines (IL-13 and IL-4) in the peripheral serum 19,[28][29][30] , and (3) modulation of nerve sensitivity, transmitting APA stimuli into neuronal signals to modulate pain in the central nervous system. 29 Nurses are the patient's first line of support in managing inpatient CRP; however, nurses have limited tools to deliver this support.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Nurse-Administered Auricular Point Acupressure for Cancer-Related Pain

Van de Castle,

Lukkahatai,

Billing

et al. 2023

Integr Cancer Ther

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Purpose: The study aimed to (1) examine the feasibility of providing a training course on auricular point acupressure (APA) for clinical oncology nurses to integrate APA into real-world nursing care settings, and (2) examine the effectiveness of APA on cancer-related pain (CRP) under usual inpatient oncology ward conditions. Methods: This was a 2-phase feasibility study. Phase 1, an in-person, 8 hour training program was provided to oncology nurses. Phase 2, a prospective and feasibility study was conducted to evaluate the integration of APA into nursing care activities to manage CRP. Oncology patients were included if their pain was rated at ≥4 on a 0 to 10 numeric rating scale in the past 24 hours. Patients received 1 APA treatment administered by the nurses and were instructed to stimulate the points for 3 days. Study outcomes (pain intensity, fatigue, and sleep disturbance), pain medication use, and APA practice were measured by a phone survey daily. Results: Ten oncology nurses received APA training in phase 1. APA had been added to the hospital’s electronic health records (EHRs) as a pain treatment. In phase 2, 33 oncology patients received APA treatment with a 100% adherence rate (pressing the seeds 3 times per day, 3 minutes per time based on the suggestion). The side effects of APA were minimal (~8%-12% felt tenderness on the ear). After 3 days of APA, patients reported 38% pain relief, 39% less fatigue, and 45% improvement in sleep disturbance; 24% reduced any type of pain medication use and 19% reduced opioid use (10 mg opioids using milligram morphine equivalent). The major barrier to integrating APA into routine nursing practice was time management (how to include APA in a daily workflow). Conclusion: It is feasible to provide 8-hour training to oncology nurses for mastering APA skill and then integrating APA into their daily nursing care for patients with CRP. Based on the promising findings (decreased pain, improved fatigue and sleep disturbance, and less opioid use), the next step is to conduct a randomized clinical trial with a larger sample to confirm the efficacy of APA for oncology nurses to treat CRP in real-world practice. ClinicalTrial.gov identifier number: NCT04040140.

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