Acupressure is the latest traditional Chinese therapy that studies suggest could treat a variety of maladies, from chemotherapy side effects to back pain.
Now, scientists are proposing that the remedy could help children relax before surgery, expanding the health resources available for this purpose.
Acupressure functions using energy lines that run throughout the body. During treatment, a finger or hand is placed on a pressure point to relieve pain and promote healing.
Dr. Zeev Kain and colleagues at the University of California Irvine studied two groups of children waiting for stomach surgery.
One groups participants had a bead taped to an acupressure point, while the other groups beads were taped to a point that is not used during acupressure.
According to researchers, the kids who were receiving legitimate acupressure were the only ones who demonstrated reduced anxiety.
The results, published in Anesthesia & Analgesia, suggest that alternative therapies could have benefits in a variety of similar situations.
“We cant assume that Western medical approaches are the only viable ones we have an obligation to look at integrative treatments,” Kain commented.