Auricular Stimulation vs. Expressive Writing for Exam Anxiety

Auricular Acupuncture (AA) vs. Expressive Writing in Treatment of Pre-exam Anxiety - Randomised Crossover Study in Medical Students

Title of the study: Auricular acupuncture (AA) vs. expressive writing for pre-exam anxiety - a randomised crossover study

Study period: 04 / 2014 - 07 / 2014

Principal Investigator: Prof. Dr. T. Usichenko Department of Anaesthesiology and Intensive Care Medicine University Medicine of Greifswald

Aim of the study: To investigate the anxiolytic effect of AA vs. expressive writing and vs. no intervention in students, passing the oral exams in anatomy at the University of Greifswald

Design: Prospective randomised crossover trial

Interventions: 1. AA using indwelling fixed needles, retained 24 h in situ 2. Expressive writing

Number of volunteers: N = 40

Healthy medical students at the University of Greifswald Participants of the anatomy exams in spring/summer 2014 Without previous anxiolytic, sedative and analgesic medication No pregnancy or lactating Informed consent

Outcome measures: Anxiety level Heart rate, blood pressure Salivary α-amylase

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. Ability to express the thoughts and emotions ("expressive writing")
5. Written informed consent

Exclusion Criteria:

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