Effects of LI4 and BL 67 acupressure on labor pain and uterine contractions in the first stage of labor. Acupuncture treatment during labour--a randomised controlled trial. Acupuncture in the management of pain in labor. Effect of acupuncture on labor. Acupuncture versus subcutaneous injections of sterile water as treatment for labour pain. Effects of SP6 acupressure on labor pain and length of delivery time in women during labor. Acupuncture as pain relief during delivery: a randomized controlled trial. Acupuncture during labor can reduce the use of meperidine: a controlled clinical study. The effects of acupuncture during labour on nulliparous women: a randomised controlled trial. Electro-acupuncture in relieving labor pain. Acupressure to reduce labor pain: a randomized controlled trial.
Acupressure is said to promote the circulation of blood and qi, the harmony of yin and yang, and the secretion of neurotransmitters, thus maintaining the normal functions of the human body and providing comfort. However, there has been little research-based evidence to support the positive effects of acupressure in the area of obstetric nursing. The purpose of this study is to determine the effect of LI4 and BL67 acupressure on labor pain and uterine contractions during the first stage of labor. An experimental study with a pretest and posttest control group design was utilized. A total of 127 parturient women were randomly assigned to three groups. Each group received only one of the following treatments, LI4 and BL67 acupressure, light skin stroking, or no treatment/conversation only. Data collected from the VAS and external fetal monitoring strips were used for analysis. Findings indicated that there was a significant difference in decreased labor pain during the active phase of the first stage of labor among the three groups. There was no significant difference in effectiveness of uterine contractions during the first stage of labor among the three groups. Results of the study confirmed the effect of LI4 and BL67 acupressure in lessening labor pain during the active phase of the first stage of labor. There were no verified effects on uterine contractions. To investigate acupuncture treatment during labour with regard to pain intensity, degree of relaxation and outcome of the delivery.
                Randomised controlled trial.
                Delivery ward at a tertiary care centre hospital in Sweden.
                Ninety parturients who delivered during the period April 12, 1999 and June 4, 2000.
                Forty-six parturients were randomised to receive acupuncture treatment during labour as a compliment, or an alternative, to conventional analgesia.
                Assessments of pain intensity and degree of relaxation during labour, together with evaluation of delivery outcome.
                Acupuncture treatment during labour significantly reduced the need of epidural analgesia (12% vs 22%, relative risk [RR] 0.52, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.30 to 0.92). Parturients who received acupuncture assessed a significantly better degree of relaxation compared with the control group (mean difference -0.93, 95% CI -1.66 to -0.20). No negative effects of acupuncture given during labour were found in relation to delivery outcome.
                The results suggest that acupuncture could be a good alternative or complement to those parturients who seek an alternative to pharmacological analgesia in childbirth. Further trials with a larger number of patients are required to clarify if the main effect of acupuncture during labour is analgesic or relaxing. To assess if acupuncture could be a reasonable option for pain relief in labor and to look at possible effects of acupuncture on the progress of labor.
                In a controlled, single blind study, 210 healthy parturients in spontaneous, active labor at term were randomly assigned to receive either real acupuncture or false acupuncture. Visual analog scale assessments were used to evaluate subjective effect on pain. The objective parameter of outcome was the need for analgesic medication in each group.
                There were significantly lower mean pain scores and significantly less need for pharmacological analgesia in the study group compared with the control group. The women given real acupuncture spent less time in active labor and needed less augmentation than the control group.
                The results indicate that acupuncture reduces the experience of pain in labor. A secondary outcome of acupuncture was a shorter delivery time, which mainly, if not exclusively, can be explained by the reduced need for epidural analgesia. Acupuncture may be useful for parturients who wish a nonpharmacological analgesia without side-effects. For others it could be the analgesic method of choice, with pharmacological analgesics as supplements. nan Two methods for pain relief and relaxation during labour are sterile water injections and acupuncture. In several studies, sterile water injections have been shown to provide good pain relief, particularly for low back pain during labour. The acupuncture studies for pain relief during labour are not as concordant. Therefore, the aim of this study was to explore if there were any differences between acupuncture and sterile water injections regarding pain relief and relaxation during labour.
                A randomised controlled trial. Some 128 pregnant women at term were randomly assigned to receive acupuncture (n=62) or sterile water injections (n=66). The primary endpoint was to compare the differences between pre-treatment pain levels and maximum pain in the 2 groups.
                The main results of this study were that sterile water injections yielded greater pain relief (p<0.001) during childbirth compared to acupuncture. The secondary outcome showed that women in the sterile water group had a higher degree of relaxation (p<0.001) compared to the acupuncture group. The women's own assessment of the effects also favoured sterile water injections (p<0.001). There were no significant differences regarding requirements for additional pain relief after treatment between the 2 groups.
                Women given sterile water injection experience less labour pain compared to women given acupuncture. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effects of SP6 acupressure on labor pain and delivery time in women in labor.
                Randomized clinical trial.
                Delivery room in a university hospital.
                Seventy-five (75) women in labor were randomly assigned to either the SP6 acupressure (n = 36) or SP6 touch control (n = 39) group. The participants were matched according to parity, cervical dilation, labor stage, rupture of amniotic membrane, and husband's presence during labor. There were no additional oxytocin augmentation or administration of analgesics during the study period.
                The 30-minute acupressure or touch on SP6 acupoint was performed.
                Labor pain was measured four times using a structured questionnaire, a subjective labor pain scale (visual-analogue scale [VAS]): before intervention, immediately after the intervention, and 30 and 60 minutes after the intervention. Length of delivery time was calculated in two stages: from 3 cm cervical dilation to full cervical dilatation, and full cervical dilatation to the delivery.
                There were significant differences between the groups in subjective labor pain scores at all time points following the intervention: immediately after the intervention (p = 0.012); 30 minutes after the intervention (p = 0.021); and 60 minutes after the intervention (p = 0.012). The total labor time (3 cm dilatation to delivery) was significantly shorter in the SP6 acupressure intervention group than in the control group (p = 0.006).
                These findings showed that SP6 acupressure was effective for decreasing labor pain and shortening the length of delivery time. SP6 acupressure can be an effective nursing management for women in labor. Many women need some kind of analgesic treatment to relieve pain during childbirth. The objective of our study was to compare the effect of acupuncture with transcutaneous electric nerve stimulation (TENS) and traditional analgesics for pain relief and relaxation during delivery with respect to pain intensity, birth experience, and obstetric outcome.
                A randomized controlled trial was conducted with 607 healthy women in labor at term who received acupuncture, TENS, or traditional analgesics. Primary outcomes were the need for pharmacological and invasive methods, level of pain assessed by a visual analogue scale, birth experience and satisfaction with delivery, and pain relief evaluated at 2 months postpartum. Secondary obstetric outcomes were duration of labor, use of oxytocin, mode of delivery, postpartum hemorrhage, Apgar score, and umbilical cord pH value. Analysis complied with the intention-to-treat principle.
                Use of pharmacological and invasive methods was significantly lower in the acupuncture group (acupuncture vs traditional, p < 0.001; acupuncture vs TENS, p = 0.031). Pain scores were comparable. Acupuncture did not influence the duration of labor or the use of oxytocin. Mean Apgar score at 5 minutes and umbilical cord pH value were significantly higher among infants in the acupuncture group compared with infants in the other groups.
                Acupuncture reduced the need for pharmacological and invasive methods during delivery. Acupuncture is a good supplement to existing pain relief methods. To evaluate the effectiveness of acupuncture as an analgesic during labor.
                A randomized, unblinded, controlled study.
                A labor ward in a University Hospital.
                Parturients at term.
                One group received acupuncture (N = 106); another did not (N = 92). A second control group (N = 92), drawn from the labor ward protocol, consisted of patients who met the eligibility criteria for the study and were matched to the "no acupuncture" group by parity, but who had not been offered the opportunity to take part. Outcome measure "effectiveness of acupuncture" was measured by the requirement for use of meperidine.
                Meperidine was given to 11% of the acupuncture group, 37% of the no acupuncture group (P < 0.0001), and 29% of the control group. The use of other analgesics was also lower in the acupuncture group. Patient satisfaction was high: 89 of 103 patients asked said they would want acupuncture during another labor.
                Acupuncture during labor reduced the requirement for other painkillers and has high patient satisfaction in this randomized, unblinded, controlled study. Acupuncture is as an ancient system of diagnosis and treatment. It is regarded as a complementary tool for pain management.
                To assess the effects of acupuncture on nulliparous women during labour with respect to pain, labour duration and maternal acceptability.
                One hundred and forty-four healthy nulliparous women in active phase were randomised into the study and control group, receiving real and minimal acupuncture, respectively. Visual analogue scale was used to assess pain. Objectives were to evaluate acupuncture effect on pain and labour duration and patients' willingness to receive acupuncture for subsequent pregnancies.
                Visual analogue scale pain score in the study group was lower after two hours. Active phase duration and the oxytocin units administered were lower in the study group. Study group patients had greater willingness to receive acupuncture again. No adverse effects were detected.
                Acupuncture could reduce pain experience, active phase duration and oxytocin units. Patients were satisfied and no adverse effects were noted. To study the efficacy of electro-acupuncture for the relief of labor pain, and to build a better understanding of how electro-acupuncture might influence the neuroendocrine system, 36 primiparas were randomly divided into an electro-acupuncture group and a control group. Assessments of pain intensity and degree of relaxation during labor were analyzed. The differences between the electro-acupuncture group and the control group on the concentration of beta-endorphin (beta-EP) and 5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT) in the peripheral blood were compared. The electro-acupuncture group was found to exhibit a lower pain intensity and a better degree of relaxation than the control group (p = 0.018; p = 0.031). There existed a significant difference in the concentration of beta-EP and 5-HT in the peripheral blood between the two groups at the end of the first stage (p = 0.037; p = 0.030). Electro-acupuncture was found to be an effective alternative or complementary therapy in the relief of pain during labor. The benefit of electro-acupuncture for relieving labor pain may be based on the mechanism of producing a synergism of the central nervous system (CNS) with a direct impact on the uterus through increasing the release of beta-EP and 5-HT into the peripheral blood. To evaluate the effect of acupressure administered during the active phase of labor on nulliparous women's ratings of labor pain.
                Randomized controlled trial.
                Public hospital in India.
                Seventy-one women randomized to receive acupressure at acupuncture point spleen 6 (SP6) on both legs during contractions over a 30-minute period (acupressure group), 71 women to receive light touch at SP6 on both legs during the same period of time (touch group) and 70 women to receive standard care (standard care group).
                Experience of in-labor pain was assessed by visual analog scale at baseline before treatment, immediately after treatment, and at 30, 60 and 120 minutes after treatment.
                Labor pain intensity at different time intervals after treatment compared with before treatment.
                A reduction of in-labor pain was found in the acupressure group and was most noticeable immediately after treatment (acupressure group vs. standard care group p < 0.001; acupressure group vs. touch group p < 0.001).
                Acupressure seems to reduce pain during the active phase of labor in nulliparous women giving birth in a context in which social support and epidural analgesia are not available. However, the treatment effect is small which suggests that acupressure may be most effective during the initial phase of labor.
Acupuncture and acupressure may have a role with reducing pain, increasing satisfaction with pain management and reduced use of pharmacological management. However, there is a need for further research.