Effectiveness of acupressure on pain management among mediosternotomy patients

Abstract

Acupressure is an alternative therapy that uses fingers and hands to stimulate acupoints and maintains the balance of energy. It was well documented that acupressure is effective in relieving different types of pains in patients with different conditions. The present study was undertaken to evaluate the effect of acupressure in pain and improving the bio-physiological parameters among mediosternotomy patients. The present study was conducted at Sri Sathya Sai Institute of Higher Medical Sciences, Whitefield, Bangalore. A total of twenty male and female patients those who undergo open-heart surgery via median sternotomy were part of the study after obtaining the written informed consent. After recording the demographic data, the participants were randomly grouped into control and intervention groups using random numbers generated by computer with 10 participants in each group. The intervention will be provided at PC6 acupressure point, situated on the inner side of the forearm, three fingers below the wrist joint, three times a day for four days. Numerical Rating Scale of pain was used to assess the pain of the Participants. There was a significant decrease in the pain score of the participants, followed by the acupressure. The study provides further evidence for the effectiveness of the acupressure in pain management and also recommends detailed research in this area.