Auricular Acupuncture for Exam Anxiety in Medical Students

Auricular Acupuncture for Exam Anxiety in Medical Students: A Randomized Crossover Investigation

Title of the study: Auricular acupuncture (AA) for pre-exam anxiety: A blinded randomized crossover study on healthy volunteers

Study period: 04/2012 - 07/2012

Institution: Department of Anesthesiology and Intensive Care Medicine University Medicine of Greifswald

Aim of the study: To investigate the anxiolytic effect of auricular acupuncture (AA) in comparison to placebo acupuncture and no intervention during oral exams in anatomy at the University of Greifswald

Design: Prospective blinded randomized crossover trial

Intervention:

1. AA using indwelling fixed needles, retained 24 h in situ
2. AA using placebo needles

Number of volunteers: N = 40

Outcome measures: Anxiety level, Heart rate, blood pressure.

Inclusion Criteria:

1. Medical students at the University of Greifswald
2. Going to take part in oral exams of human anatomy
3. Participants without previous anxiolytic medication
4. Participants without any experiences with acupuncture
5. Patients who have given written informed consent

Exclusion Criteria:

1. Local auricular skin infection
2. Pregnant or lactating women
3. Participants with prosthetic or damaged cardiac valves, intracardiac and intravascular shunts, hypertrophic cardiomyopathy and mitral valve prolapse (risk of bacterial endocarditis according to guidelines of AHA)
4. Participants who are unable to understand the consent form
5. History of psychiatric disease, alcohol and drug abuse