Pilot Study on the Effect of Biophysical Therapy on Salivary Alpha-Amylase as a Surrogate Measure of Anxiety/Stress: In Search of a Novel Noninvasive Molecular Approach for the Management of Stress

Abstract

Anxiety and depression impact dramatically on public health, underlying the importance of alternative cost-effective treatments. Previous studies have shown that biophysical treatment can significantly reduce anxiety symptoms and recently, salivary alpha-amylase (SAA) has been identified as an objective correlate of the sympathetic-parasympathetic imbalance related to increased stress burden, defined as allostatic load. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of biophysical therapy on SAA levels, in addition to the Depression Anxiety Stress Scale (DASS)-21 questionnaire. Twenty-four workers (sales representatives) presenting with mild anxiety/stress symptoms (Generalized Anxiety Disorder 7-item scale of > 5) were randomized to biophysical treatment (N = 12) or placebo control (N = 12). The biophysical group underwent electromagnetic information transfer through an aqueous system procedure, with daily self-administration for one month. SAA collection and the DASS-21 questionnaire were undertaken at baseline and after one month in all patients. Clinical characteristics and baseline DASS-21 subscale scores were similar between placebo and biophysical group at baseline. After one month, patients receiving biophysical therapy had significantly reduced SAA levels compared to the placebo group (27.8 ± 39.4 vs. 116.8 ± 114.9 U/mL, p = 0.019). All three DASS-21 subscales, depression (9.3 ± 5.1 vs. 5.7 ± 5.5, p = 0.1), anxiety (6.7 ± 25 vs. 3.7 ± 2.2, p = 0.0049) and stress (10.8 ± 4.2 vs. 7.3 ± 3.7, p = 0.041) were also decreased after biophysical treatment compared to placebo after one month. Our findings suggest that biophysical therapy can benefit workers with mild (subclinical) anxiety/stress. These results were also validated by the concomitant reduction of SAA levels and an improvement in DASS-21 subscales. The underlying molecular mechanisms of this therapy remain to be characterized.

Pre-operative Anxiety Compounding Intra-operative Hypotension in Parturient women undergoing Cesarean Deliveries under Spinal Anesthesia

“…Measurement of salivary amylase is an indirect measurement of anxiety which is less reliable and facilities for this test are not available in our setup. [13][14] Spinal anesthesia in cesarean deliveries results in some degree of hypotension in almost all cases as represented in many international studies. [15][16] In this study we demonstrated that increased pre-operative anxiety was associated with a greater reduction in MAP after spinal anesthesia for cesarean delivery.…”

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“…One such possibility involves the use of water in its mesoscopic, i.e., dynamically ordered, state. According to many researchers and their findings, its oscillation patterns can be changed as a consequence of the subtle field influence that induces or transfers order from a system to water [6][7][8]. Even if this supramolecular order of water is not universally recognized, it comprises many valuable empirical pieces of research and theoretical considerations comprising socalled water clusters [9][10][11], coherent domains [12], exclusion zone water [13] and other similar formations.…”