Exploring vibroacoustic therapy in adults experiencing pain: a scoping review.

OBJECTIVE: To explore the characteristics and outcomes of vibroacoustic therapy (VAT) in adults experiencing pain. To give directions for future research and clinical applications of VAT in pain management for adults. DESIGN: Scoping review. DATA SOURCES: BMC, CINAHL Plus, Cochrane Library, EBSCOhost, EBM Reviews, EMBASE, Epistemonikos, ERIC, MEDLINE complete, Scopus, Web of Science, Google Scholar, ProQuest, hand search in unpublished sources. STUDY SELECTION: All quantitative and qualitative research studies and systematic reviews, without any date or language limit. DATA EXTRACTION: Two independent reviewers extracted data on the study design, location and setting, the causes of pain, participants, vibroacoustic intervention, measurement tools, and key findings related to pain. RESULTS: From 430 records, 20 were included for narrative synthesis. Fifteen studies researched chronic pain, two studies acute pain, two studies both types of pain and one study experimentally induced pain. The description of VAT applied in studies usually included the description of research experiments, vibroacoustic devices and frequencies of sinusoidal sound. There was high heterogeneity in study protocols, however, 40 Hz was predominantly used, most sessions ranged between 20 and 45 min, and the frequency of treatment was higher for acute pain (daily) compared with chronic pain (daily to once a week). Outcomes related to pain focused mainly on perceived pain; however, other surrogate measures were also considered, for example, an increased number of treatment days or pain medication usage. CONCLUSIONS: Research in this area is too sparse to identify properties of VAT that are beneficial for pain management. We suggest VAT researchers describe a minimum of four measurements-frequency, amplitude, pulsation and loudness. Randomised controlled trials are needed to establish reliable scientific proof of VAT effectiveness for both acute and chronic pain. Furthermore, clinical practice would benefit from researching patients' experiences and preferences of vibroacoustic treatment and its psychosocial components.

Effect of low frequency sound vibration on acute stress response in university students-Pilot randomized controlled trial.

Background: Low frequency sound (LFS, combined with music listening) is applied by practitioners in vibroacoustic therapy who report a positive effect of this intervention on acute stress response. However, there is a lack of research on this topic and studies with mainly objective measurements are scarce. Materials and methods: In this pilot double-blinded Randomized Controlled Trial we used a multimodal approach to measurement of acute stress response in 54 international university students attending a university summer school in Olomouc, the Czech Republic who were individually randomized into a group receiving LFS vibration and a control group. In both groups, the acute stress response was measured by heart rate variability (HRV), visual analogue scales (VAS) for stress and muscle relaxation. Results: Differences were found in pre-test post-test measures, however, between groups differences occurred only for HRV, with statistically significant improvement in the experimental group (parameter LF/HF and pNN50). Conclusion: Vibroacoustic therapy has the potential to contribute to the stress management of university students. Further research is needed to explore the effect of LFS on stress response, especially when applied without additional music listening.

Pilot project: evidence-based methodology in education of future teachers.

BACKGROUND: The field of study Teaching of Vocational Subjects for Nursing Schools, the completion of which contributes to obtaining a teaching qualification at the master's level, is amongst the most prestigious fields at the Faculty of Education, Palacký University Olomouc. In the academic year of 2018/2019, the students of this field are involved in the pilot project introducing and teaching Evidence-Based Practice (EBP) methods. The concept is based on the experience of The Czech Republic (Central European) Centre for Evidence-Based Healthcare: A Joanna Briggs Institute Centre of Excellence team. OBJECTIVES: The aims of this short communication are, first, to provide information about the pilot project and the implementation of EBP methodology into selected subjects at the Faculty of Education, and second, to provide information regarding the establishment of a working group for the foundation of the Centre for Evidence-Based Education. METHODS: To implement the EBP method into the training of healthcare professionals, four syllabi of the currently taught subjects were updated and improved to include this methodology, and a brand new subject was created with the title 'Evidence-Based Education and Healthcare'. The faculty received approval from the National Accreditation Bureau for Higher Education and in September 2018, teaching of EBP topics was launched for a group of 95 full-time and part-time students. The academic year of 2019/2020 will see the introduction of the new subject 'Evidence-Based Education and Healthcare'. RESULTS: The outcomes of the project include an adjusted content of the subjects 'Scientific Components in the Health Education Curriculum' and the 'Diploma Thesis Seminar', the new subject titled 'Evidence-Based Education and Healthcare', and the strategic plan for the Conception and establishment of the Joanna Briggs Institute affiliate Evidence-Based Education Centre. CONCLUSION: It is appropriate to implement comprehensive EBP modules, with several subjects within the study curriculum. Current activities are the preparatory, motivational phase of potential development.