Laser acupuncture protocol for essential systemic arterial hypertension: randomized clinical trial.
Raphael Dias de Mello Pereira, Neide Aparecida Titonelli Alvim, Claudia Dayube Pereira and 1 others
PMID 30020330WHAT IT FOUND
In hard-to-control hypertension, nurse-delivered laser acupuncture plus usual drug therapy lowered blood pressure to 128x80 mmHg after six sessions; the simulation device did not.
This is an immediate treatment effect, not long-term control.
Key findings
01The laser arm reached a plateau of 128x80 mmHg at the sixth post-intervention measurement.
02The simulation arm did not show a comparable fall; its sixth post-session mean readings were 156.9 mmHg systolic and 95.7 mmHg diastolic.
03No undesirable effects or adverse events requiring participant exchange or compromising study quality were reported.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for RNs
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What it does not show
The study stopped early after an interim analysis showed a difference between arms, and no further participants were included. The final analysis included only participants who attended all sessions, not everyone randomized. Dropout was higher in the simulation arm than in the laser arm: 29.4% versus 15.6%. The trial did not follow participants after therapy stopped, so long-term control was not tested. Both arms received nursing consultations and blood pressure monitoring, so the comparison is real laser versus simulation within a nursing-care package, not laser alone. Lifestyle factors and medication adherence were not fully controlled, although the study excluded other complementary practices, smokers, alcoholics, and participants in exercise or diet programs.
Declared interests
The paper reports funding from Brazilian science, technology and health agencies, which supported team travel and purchase of equipment and inputs. No commercial sponsor or author conflict is described.
The easy way to misread this
Do not conclude that laser acupuncture alone controls hypertension. Participants also received drug treatment, nursing consultations, blood pressure monitoring, and later lifestyle guidance, so the contribution of any single component cannot be separated. The blood pressure effect was seen during the six-session treatment period; the study did not test what happened after treatment stopped.