Tratamiento con acupuntura de la ansiedad ante los exámenes en estudiantes universitarios

Abstract

ObjectiveTo demonstrate the efficacy of acupuncture on pre-examination anxiety in university students. DesignA non-randomised experimental study. SettingUniversidad CEU Cardenal Herrera, Elche, Alicante, Spain. ParticipantsHealthy university students ≥ 18 years-old: 23 subjects in the intervention group and 21 in the control group. InterventionsThe study consisted of 10 acupuncture sessions (2 per week) of 30minutes during the 5 weeks before the examinations. The control group patients were also assessed using the Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI) at the same times (T1, T2, and T3) as those in the sessions performed by the intervention group. Main measurementsThe BAI was used to measure anxiety. This mainly evaluated the physiological symptoms, with 14 of its 21 items referring to physiological symptoms, 4 to cognitive aspects, and 3 to affective aspects. The questionnaire consisted of 21 questions, with a score range from 0 to 63. The cut-off points are: very low anxiety (0-21); moderate anxiety (22-35), and severe anxiety (> 35). There is probable anxiety if the BAI score is equal or greater than 22 points. ResultsAfter 5 treatment sessions it was shown that the anxiety levels decreased in comparison with the scores in the BAI before starting the treatment. After 10 sessions, the intervention group maintained these anxiety levels, whereas in the non-treated control group the anxiety levels increased significantly. ConclusionsAcupuncture has shown to be effective in reducing pre-examination anxiety levels in physiotherapy students.