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Acupressure Treatment Lowers Anxiety Levels in Children Before Surgery IRVINE, Calif -- October 2, 2008 -- An acupressure treatment applied to children undergoing anaesthesia noticeably lowers their anxiety levels and makes the stress of surgery more calming for them and their families, according to a study in the September issue of Anesthesia & Analgesia. According to lead authors Zeev Kain, MD, University of California Irvine, Irvine, California, and Shu-Ming Wang, MD, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut, this noninvasive, drug-free method is an effective, complementary anxiety-relief therapy for children during surgical preparation. "Anxiety in children before surgery is bad because of the emotional toll on the child and parents, and this anxiety can lead to prolonged recovery and the increased use of analgesics for postoperative pain," said Dr. Kain. "What's great about the use of acupressure is that it costs very little and has no side effects." In the study, Dr. Kain and colleagues applied adhesive acupressure beads to 52 children aged 8 to 17 years who were to undergo endoscopic stomach surgery. In half the children, a bead was applied to the Extra-1 acupoint. In the other half, the bead was applied to a spot above the left eyebrow that has no reported clinical effects. Thirty minutes later, the researchers noted decreased anxiety levels in the children who had the beads applied to the Extra-1 acupoint. In turn, anxiety levels increased in the other group. Overall, they found the use of acupressure had no effect on the surgical procedure. "As anaesthesiologists, we need to look at all therapeutic opportunities to make the surgical process less stressful for all patients," said Dr. Kain. "We can't assume that Western medical approaches are the only viable ones, and we have an obligation to look at integrative treatments like acupressure as a way to improve the surgery experience." SOURCE: University of California Irvine E-mail this page to a friend or colleague! To print, use this version