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In Traditional Medicine, auricular acupressure (AA) is one of the non-pharmacological treatment methods commonly utilized due to its safety and convenience. AA involves the application of a taped seed of Vaccaria (with a diameter of 2mm) on specific ear acupoints to manage various disorders. Among these, chronic lower back pain is prevalent. According to Traditional Medicine, the Kidney point is selected for this condition due to the belief that "The lumbar region is the house of the Kidneys". However, evidence supporting this correlation is still lacking. In this study, the aim is to assess the relationship between the Kidney point and the lumbar region by monitoring changes in skin temperature through the application of AA on this acupoint.
Healthy volunteers meeting all selection criteria and not violating exclusion criteria will be recruited for the study.
Before commencement, participants will acclimate to the environment for 15 minutes, allowing stabilization of blood pressure, heart rate, respiratory rate, and body temperature. The room will be enclosed and shielded, ensuring no direct sunlight or other radiation sources enter. Room temperature, pressure, humidity, and ventilation will be consistently maintained throughout the study.
The participants will be randomly divided into two groups: one receiving auricular acupressure (AA) first followed by sham auricular acupressure (SA) (AA-SA group), while the other group will receive SA first followed by AA (SA-AA group).
Blood pressure, heart rate, respiratory rate, body temperature, lumbar region temperature, and side effects of auricular therapies will be continuously monitored.
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| Label | Type | Description | Intervention Names |
|---|---|---|---|
| AA-SA | Experimental | Order: auricular acupressure on the left ear, auricular acupressure on the right ear, sham auricular acupressure on the left ear. There will be a 30-minute break between each stage. |
|
| SA-AA | Experimental | Order: sham auricular acupressure on the left ear, auricular acupressure on the right ear, auricular acupressure on the left ear. There will be a 30-minute break between each stage. |
|
| Name | Type | Description | Arm Group Labels | Other Names |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Auricular acupressure on the left ear | Procedure | Auricular acupressure is applied at the Kidney point on the left ear using a tape with a Vaccaria seed (2mm in diameter). After placement on this acupoint, apply consistent moderate pressure for 5 minutes. |
| Measure | Description | Time Frame |
|---|---|---|
| Change in temperature of the left lumbar region | The temperature of the lumbar region is recorded using an infrared thermal imaging camera. The unit is degrees Celsius (°C). | During procedure |
| Change in temperature of the right lumbar region | The temperature of the lumbar region is recorded using an infrared thermal imaging camera. The unit is degrees Celsius (°C). | During procedure |
| Measure | Description | Time Frame |
|---|---|---|
| The proportion of auricular acupuncture side effects | During procedure |
| Measure | Description | Time Frame |
|---|---|---|
| Change in body temperature | Body temperature is measured in the armpit using a digital thermometer. The unit is degrees Celsius (°C). | During procedure |
| Change in heart rate | The unit is beat per minute (bpm). |
Inclusion Criteria:
Exclusion Criteria:
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| Facility | Status | City | State | ZIP | Country | Contacts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Faculty of Traditional medicine, University of Medicine and Pharmacy at Ho Chi Minh City | Ho Chi Minh City | 700000 | Vietnam |
| PubMed Identifier | Type | Citation | Retractions |
|---|---|---|---|
| 31237981 | Background | Moura CC, Chaves ECL, Chianca TCM, Ruginsk SG, Nogueira DA, Souza VHS, Iunes DH. Contribution of Chinese and French ear acupuncture for the management of chronic back pain: A randomised controlled trial. J Clin Nurs. 2019 Nov;28(21-22):3796-3806. doi: 10.1111/jocn.14983. Epub 2019 Aug 9. | |
| 25745463 | Background |
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| ID | Term |
|---|---|
| D001832 | Body Temperature Changes |
| ID | Term |
|---|---|
| D012816 | Signs and Symptoms |
| D013568 | Pathological Conditions, Signs and Symptoms |
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| Auricular acupressure on the right ear | Procedure | Auricular acupressure is applied at the Kidney point on the right ear using a tape with a Vaccaria seed (2mm in diameter). After placement on this acupoint, apply consistent moderate pressure for 5 minutes. |
|
| Sham auricular acupressure | Procedure | Sham auricular acupressure is applied at Kidney point on the left ear using a tape without any seed. After placement on this acupoint, apply consistent moderate pressure for 5 minutes. |
|
| During procedure |
| Change in respiratory rate | The unit is breath per minute (bpm). | During procedure |
| Change in blood pressure | Blood pressure is measured on the arm using an electronic blood pressure monitor, including systolic and diastolic blood pressure. The unit is mmHg. | During procedure |
| Guan L, Li G, Yang Y, Deng X, Cai P. Infrared thermography and meridian-effect evidence and explanation in Bell's palsy patients treated by moxibustion at the Hegu (LI4) acupoint: Overall regulation or a specific target? Neural Regen Res. 2012 Mar 25;7(9):680-5. doi: 10.3969/j.issn.1673-5374.2012.09.007. |
| 29103410 | Background | Fan AY, Miller DW, Bolash B, Bauer M, McDonald J, Faggert S, He H, Li YM, Matecki A, Camardella L, Koppelman MH, Stone JAM, Meade L, Pang J. Acupuncture's Role in Solving the Opioid Epidemic: Evidence, Cost-Effectiveness, and Care Availability for Acupuncture as a Primary, Non-Pharmacologic Method for Pain Relief and Management-White Paper 2017. J Integr Med. 2017 Nov;15(6):411-425. doi: 10.1016/S2095-4964(17)60378-9. |
| 26823672 | Background | Hou PW, Hsu HC, Lin YW, Tang NY, Cheng CY, Hsieh CL. The History, Mechanism, and Clinical Application of Auricular Therapy in Traditional Chinese Medicine. Evid Based Complement Alternat Med. 2015;2015:495684. doi: 10.1155/2015/495684. Epub 2015 Dec 28. |
| 30183875 | Background | Moura CC, Iunes DH, Ruginsk SG, Souza VHS, Assis BB, Chaves ECL. Action of ear acupuncture in people with chronic pain in the spinal column: a randomized clinical trial1. Rev Lat Am Enfermagem. 2018 Sep 3;26:e3050. doi: 10.1590/1518-8345.2678.3050. |
| 25435890 | Background | Tan JY, Molassiotis A, Wang T, Suen LK. Adverse events of auricular therapy: a systematic review. Evid Based Complement Alternat Med. 2014;2014:506758. doi: 10.1155/2014/506758. Epub 2014 Nov 10. |
| 18068545 | Background | Gao XY, Zhang SP, Zhu B, Zhang HQ. Investigation of specificity of auricular acupuncture points in regulation of autonomic function in anesthetized rats. Auton Neurosci. 2008 Feb 29;138(1-2):50-6. doi: 10.1016/j.autneu.2007.10.003. |
| 23304215 | Background | He W, Wang X, Shi H, Shang H, Li L, Jing X, Zhu B. Auricular acupuncture and vagal regulation. Evid Based Complement Alternat Med. 2012;2012:786839. doi: 10.1155/2012/786839. Epub 2012 Nov 27. |
| 30256726 | Background | Morrison SF, Nakamura K. Central Mechanisms for Thermoregulation. Annu Rev Physiol. 2019 Feb 10;81:285-308. doi: 10.1146/annurev-physiol-020518-114546. Epub 2018 Sep 26. |