RESUMEN
BACKGROUND: The Le7 acupoint had been known as an acupoint for reducing pain of appendicitis. However, no study on the effect of its acupressure on post-appendectomy pain is available. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of acupressure of Le7 acupoint on pain, nausea, and vomiting after appendectomy. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A single-blind randomized controlled trial was conducted on 70 post-appendectomy patients in a general surgical ward. Patients with inclusion criteria were selected consecutively and were randomly assigned into two groups. The intervention group received acupressure to the Le7 acupoint and the second group was the control group. The severity of post-operative pain, nausea, and vomiting measured hourly till the seventh post-operative hour. T-test was used to compare the mean of pain and nausea severity of two groups. Paired t-test was used to compare the mean of pain intensity of each group before and total mean of pain at post-intervention hours. Chi-squared test and Fisher exact test were used for nominal data. RESULTS: The mean of pain intensity in the intervention group was 5.10 ± 3.52 before intervention and decreased to 3.53 ± 0.75 in the post-operative hours (P = 0.018). The mean of pain intensity in the control group was 4.45 ± 3.16 before intervention and changed to 4.01 ± 0.92 in the post-operative hours (P = 0.32). However, the mean of pain intensity in the intervention group was less than the control group till 6(th) h after the surgery. No significant differences were observed between the two groups in terms of nausea and vomiting (P = 0.74). CONCLUSION: Acupressure on Le7 acupoint was effective on post-appendectomy pain but did not affect nausea and vomiting. Further investigations are suggested with starting acupressure at the onset of pain or nausea and vomiting.
RESUMEN
INTRODUCTION: The use of acupressure is growing. Several studies have applied pressure to the P6 to reduce postoperative nausea, vomiting, and pain but have reported conflicting results. This study aimed to investigate the effects of pressure to the P6 point on pain, nausea and vomiting after appendectomy. METHODS: A single-blind, randomized controlled clinical trial was conducted on 88 patients after appendectomy. The subjects were randomly assigned to two groups. After the patients in the intervention group had regained their consciousness, pressure was applied to the P6 acupoint using special Acubands. In the control group, the Acubands were fastened loosely on the patients' wrists. The bracelets were kept for seven hours and pain, nausea, and vomiting were measured hourly. Student's t-test and chi-square test were used to analyze data. All analyses were performed in SPSS11.5. RESULTS: The two groups were not significantly different in terms of age, body mass index, duration of anesthesia, and length of incision. The mean pain intensity in the two groups was not significantly different at different times. Overall, 45.4% of the P6 group and 47.7% of the control group experienced postoperative nausea. The two groups were not significantly different in the mean intensity of nausea at different postoperative hours. In total, 12 patients in the P6 group and 18 in the control group had vomiting CONCLUSION: Pressure to the P6 did not significantly reduce pain and nausea after appendectomy. However, the incidence of vomiting was less in the P6 group. This method can be used to reduce vomiting after appendectomy. Similar studies are suggested to apply pressure with the onset of pain or nausea and vomiting.
