Acupuncture for perceived stress in pregnant women: an intervention study.
Nicolau da Costa, Eveliny Silva Martins, Ana Karina Bezerra Pinheiro and 3 others
PMID 35639350WHAT IT FOUND
Pregnant women who completed six acupuncture sessions reported lower perceived stress at three weeks.
Without a control group, the study cannot show that acupuncture caused the drop.
Key findings
01Mean perceived stress scores were 22.4 at the initial assessment and 16.7 at the third week.
02The difference in perceived stress over the four time points was statistically significant.
03Twenty-seven pregnant women were lost during the intervention, and 29 remained for analysis.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for RNs
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What it does not show
This was a before-after study with no control group. It cannot show whether the change was due to acupuncture or another factor. Fifty-six women started, but 27 were lost and 29 were analysed. The people who completed the study may not represent all eligible women. The study used convenience sampling in one primary health unit, so it may not apply to other settings or pregnant women. Follow-up was only three weeks, and the authors noted a possible loss of effect over time. Only one auricular acupuncture protocol was tested, so the result may not apply to other acupuncture methods.
The easy way to misread this
Do not conclude that acupuncture caused the reduction in perceived stress. This was a before-after study with no control group, and 27 women were lost during follow-up.