The Effect of Auriculotherapy on Anxiety and Physiological Parameters of Male Coronary Angiography Patients: A Single-blind Randomized Clinical Trial.

ABSTRACT

PURPOSE: To determine the effect of auriculotherapy on anxiety and physiological parameters of male patients undergoing coronary angiography. DESIGN: A single-blind randomized clinical trial was performed in 2019 with 94 subjects selected by convenience sampling. METHODS: The subjects were divided into 2 groups via random allocation. Two hours before angiography, all patients completed the Depression, Anxiety, and Stress Scale-21 items (DASS-21) and their physiological parameters (blood pressure, pulse rate, and respiratory rate) were measured 60 minutes before angiography. Auriculotherapy was performed on ear acupoints of patients in the experimental group for 4 minutes. In the control group, patients were given auricular acupressure in sham points. The anxiety and physiological parameters were re-measured 10 minutes after the intervention. FINDINGS: Patients' anxiety was clinically lower in the experimental group (2.55 ± 0.27) compared to the control group (3.02 ± 0.33) (effect size = -1.42) after the intervention. There was no significant difference between 2 groups regarding physiological parameters after the intervention. However, the respiratory rates of patients were lower in the experimental group than in the control group (P < .001). After the intervention, physiological parameters significantly decreased in the experimental group compared to before the intervention (P < .001). CONCLUSIONS: Auriculotherapy reduces patient anxiety; therefore, it can be used as a complementary method before angiography.