University Medicine of Greifswald
Greifswald, 17475, Germany
Location status: Recruiting
Recruiting
NCT Number: NCT07664826
Acupuncture Mechanism in Relief of Gag Reflex
The gag reflex relief effect of acupuncture of CV24 acupoint will be compared to acupuncture of PC6 and K3 acupoints in healthy volunteers in crossover mode. Second step will be the investigation whether local anesthesia using EMLA creme will block the gag relief effect of CV24 acupuncture in healthy volunteers.
Recruiting
Interested in participating?
Request InfoKey information
Conditions
Age range
20 year–40 year
Sex eligibility
All sexes
Study type
Interventional
Phase
Not applicable
Primary location
Who can participate
Healthy volunteers accepted: Yes
Only the study team can determine whether someone qualifies for participation.
Inclusion criteria
- Healthy volunteers aged between 20-40 years old with an American Society of Anesthesiologists physical status of I to II naïve to acupuncture
- Participants without previous opioid and psychotropic medication
- Without use of recreational drugs 3 days prior to study sessions
- Without systemic disease or local skin lesions at the sites of acupuncture
- Without drug allergy to local anesthetics, especially EMLA preparation
- Participants who have given written informed consent
Exclusion criteria
- Local skin infection at the sites of acupuncture
- Aged < 20 or > 35 years
- History of drug allergy to local anesthetics
- Participants who are unable to understand the consent form or to use numeric rating scale NRS-11
Discontinuation Criteria
- Any adverse effects during study session
- In case of local or systemic infection
- In case if subject will withdraw from participation in this study at any time, for any reason, specified or non-specified, and without penalty or loss of benefits
Treatment and study plan
Acupuncture
OtherNeedling of acupoints CV24, PC6 and K3
Primary outcomes
-
Length of saliva injector insertion (cm)
Time frame: Day 1 ( before and after acupuncture)
Saliva injector is inserted intraoral slowly until the gagging (pharyngeal reflex) is elicited; the length of insertion of saliva injector will be measured in centimeters
Secondary outcomes
-
Severity of gagging, measured using the Numeric Rating Scale NRS-11 (0=no gagging; 10=maximal)
Time frame: Day 1 ( before and after acupuncture)
Study contacts
Contact information is provided by the study sponsor or research team.
Sponsors and collaborators
Lead sponsor
University Medicine Greifswald
Other
Registry information
Official study title
The Mechanism of Acupuncture for Relief of Pharyngeal (Gag) Reflex - an Experimental Crossover Investigation
Acronym: AcuGagDiff
Important dates
- Study start
- 2026
- Primary completion
- 2026
- Study completion
- 2026
- First posted
- Jun 24, 2026
- Registry last updated
- Jun 24, 2026
OpenTrials presents study information sourced from ClinicalTrials.gov. The official registry record should be consulted for the latest information.
View the official ClinicalTrials.gov record (opens in a new tab)This listing is for discovery and informational purposes only. It is not medical advice, does not guarantee that a study is recruiting, and does not determine eligibility. Contact the study team and a qualified healthcare professional when considering participation.