Yintang Acupressure During Labor in Primiparous Women

This study was conducted as a randomized, sham-controlled clinical trial involving primiparous women admitted to the maternity ward of a hospital in eastern Türkiye. The study aimed to evaluate the effects of Yintang acupressure on labor duration, labor pain, postpartum anxiety, and childbirth satisfaction.

A total of 104 eligible participants were randomly assigned in a 1:1 ratio to the intervention group (n=52) or the sham control group (n=52). Participants in both groups received routine midwifery care.

Participants assigned to the intervention group received manual acupressure at the Yintang point, located on the midline of the forehead between the eyebrows. Five sessions were administered: at 5-6 cm cervical dilation, at 6-7 cm cervical dilation, at approximately 8 cm cervical dilation, during the third stage of labor, and 60 minutes after childbirth. Each session lasted approximately 6-7 minutes.

Participants in the sham control group received light touch at a forehead location outside the Yintang point. The duration, participant position, and practitioner contact were designed to resemble the intervention procedure without applying therapeutic pressure to the Yintang point.

Labor duration was recorded using a labor monitoring form. Pain intensity was evaluated using the Visual Analogue Scale at prespecified assessment points. Anxiety was assessed using the Beck Anxiety Inventory, and childbirth satisfaction was assessed using the Birth Satisfaction Assessment Form after childbirth.

Because participant recruitment and data collection had been completed before submission of this record, the study was registered retrospectively.

• Primiparous women
• Aged 18 years or older
• In the active phase of labor with cervical dilation of 5-6 cm at enrollment
• Term singleton pregnancy
• Fetus in cephalic presentation
• No known fetal congenital anomaly
• Intact and healthy skin at the forehead area where acupressure or sham light touch will be applied
• Able and willing to provide written informed consent

Exclusion criteria

• Known sensitivity or intolerance to acupressure or touch at the application site
• Use of pharmacological pain-control methods before enrollment, including analgesics, sedatives, or epidural analgesia
• High-risk pregnancy, including preeclampsia or diabetes
• History of a diagnosed neurological or psychiatric disorder
• Signs of fetal distress