Electroacupuncture for postoperative pain after nasal endoscopic surgery: study protocol for a pilot randomized controlled trial

Abstract

Background: Postoperative pain is a common disorder that interferes with the quality of sleep after nasal endoscopic surgery and delays postoperative recovery. Acupuncture is an effective tool for pain management. However, electroacupuncture specifically for the relief of postoperative pain after nasal endoscopic surgery has not yet been studied through a randomized controlled trial. Method/Design: A pilotrandomized, sham-controlled, patient- and- assessor-blind trial is designed to evaluate the efficacy and safety of electroacupuncturein managing postoperative pain following nasal endoscopic surgery of sinusitis with nasal polyps. There will be 30participants randomly allocated to an electroacupuncture or non-invasive sham control in a 1:1 ratio. Treatment will be done within 2 hours before operation, immediately after the operation upon arrival to the recovery ward, and once daily for 3 days. The primary outcome of the Pain Numerical Rating Scale (NRS) will be analyzed using the area-under-the-curve (AUC) method. The secondary outcome measures include Heart Rate (HR) and Blood Pressure (BP) after operation, the sleep quality during the hospital stay (Actigragh),Quality of Recovery-15 (QoR-15), and the MOS item short form health survey (SF-36). ITT analysis will be used in this RCT. Discussion: This pilot randomized controlled trial will explore the feasibility of further clinical application for the management of postoperative pain using electroacupuncture treatment, and it will inform the design of a further full-scale trial. Trial Registration: Chinese Clinical Trial Registry, ChiCTR1900024183, Date: 2019-06-29. URL: http://www.chictr.org.cn/showproj.aspx?proj=40573 Keywords: Electroacupuncture; postoperative pain;nasal endoscopic surgery; RCT; randomized controlled trial; clinical trial

Electroacupuncture alleviates the transition from acute to chronic pain through the p38 MAPK/TNF-α signalling pathway in the spinal dorsal horn

“…6 Electroacupuncture (EA) is a commonly used method that can effectively treat acute and chronic inflammatory pain. 7,8 EA has been shown to inhibit pain transition through the peripheral dorsal root ganglia. 9,10 However, it remains unclear whether EA could prevent the transition from acute to chronic pain by attenuating p38 MAPK/TNF-α expression in the spinal dorsal horn.…”

Design and Implementation of an Intelligent Analgesic Bracelet Based on Wrist-ankle Acupuncture

“…These undesirable effects delay the recovery of patients and prolong the length of hospital stay. In addition, a great number of studies on nonpharmacological methods of analgesia such as acupuncture and transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS) have indicated an apparent reduction in pain sensation of patients after treatment [6], [7], [8], [9]. Acupuncture, which has been practiced for over 2000 years in China, has been extensively used for the treatment of pain outside China, especially after the release of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Consensus in 1997 [10], [11], [12].…”