Abstract
Anxiety and depression impact dramatically on public health, underlying the importance of alternative cost-effective treatments. Previous studies have shown that biophysical treatment can significantly reduce anxiety symptoms and recently, salivary alpha-amylase (SAA) has been identified as an objective correlate of the sympathetic-parasympathetic imbalance related to increased stress burden, defined as allostatic load. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of biophysical therapy on SAA levels, in addition to the Depression Anxiety Stress Scale (DASS)-21 questionnaire. Twenty-four workers (sales representatives) presenting with mild anxiety/stress symptoms (Generalized Anxiety Disorder 7-item scale of > 5) were randomized to biophysical treatment (N = 12) or placebo control (N = 12). The biophysical group underwent electromagnetic information transfer through an aqueous system procedure, with daily self-administration for one month. SAA collection and the DASS-21 questionnaire were undertaken at baseline and after one month in all patients. Clinical characteristics and baseline DASS-21 subscale scores were similar between placebo and biophysical group at baseline. After one month, patients receiving biophysical therapy had significantly reduced SAA levels compared to the placebo group (27.8 ± 39.4 vs. 116.8 ± 114.9 U/mL, p = 0.019). All three DASS-21 subscales, depression (9.3 ± 5.1 vs. 5.7 ± 5.5, p = 0.1), anxiety (6.7 ± 25 vs. 3.7 ± 2.2, p = 0.0049) and stress (10.8 ± 4.2 vs. 7.3 ± 3.7, p = 0.041) were also decreased after biophysical treatment compared to placebo after one month. Our findings suggest that biophysical therapy can benefit workers with mild (subclinical) anxiety/stress. These results were also validated by the concomitant reduction of SAA levels and an improvement in DASS-21 subscales. The underlying molecular mechanisms of this therapy remain to be characterized.
Highlights
Stress burden is recognized as an important prognostic factor associated with increased morbidity and mortality [1,2]
Biophysical therapeutic methods have emerged as integrative tools in clinical practice and their potential beneficial use has been documented for the management of pain [19], in particular joint pain [20,21], back pain [22,23], neck pain [24], psoriasis [25], chronic kidney disease [26], and minor anxiety and depressive disorders [27]
Salivary alpha-amylase (SAA) has been identified as an objective correlate of the sympathetic-parasympathetic imbalance related to increased stress burden, defined as allostatic load [28,29,30,31,32]
Summary
Stress burden is recognized as an important prognostic factor associated with increased morbidity and mortality [1,2]. Interventions aimed at decreasing allostatic load could provide benefit in terms of decreasing morbidity and mortality [7]. Endogenous electrodynamic activity [9,10,11,12] appears to play a central role in the short and long-range hierarchical synchronization of physiological activity aimed to maintain allostasis and restore allostasis when allostatic load is altered. The working hypotheses is that biophysical treatment can induce their clinical benefit through a resonance effect [15]. Resonance occurs between therapeutically delivered electromagnetic (endogenous or exogenous) signals to target tissues, organs, and/or the entire organism [16,17], resulting in both local and systemic effects [18]. Biophysical therapeutic methods have emerged as integrative tools in clinical practice and their potential beneficial use has been documented for the management of pain [19], in particular joint pain [20,21], back pain [22,23], neck pain [24], psoriasis [25], chronic kidney disease [26], and minor anxiety and depressive disorders [27]
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