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Completed

NCT Number: NCT02920164

Auricular Acupuncture for Exam Anxiety in Medical Students

Title of the study: Auricular acupuncture (AA) for pre-exam anxiety: A blinded randomized crossover study on healthy volunteers

Study period: 04/2012 - 07/2012

Institution: Department of Anesthesiology and Intensive Care Medicine University Medicine of Greifswald

Aim of the study: To investigate the anxiolytic effect of auricular acupuncture (AA) in comparison to placebo acupuncture and no intervention during oral exams in anatomy at the University of Greifswald

Design: Prospective blinded randomized crossover trial

Intervention:

1. AA using indwelling fixed needles, retained 24 h in situ 2. AA using placebo needles

Number of volunteers: N = 40

Outcome measures: Anxiety level, Heart rate, blood pressure.

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Key information

Conditions

Anxiety Anxiety Disorders Mental Disorders

Age range

19 year–35 year

Sex eligibility

All sexes

Study type

Interventional

Phase

Phase 2

Primary location

University Medicine of Greifswald

Greifswald, Germany

Who can participate

Healthy volunteers accepted: Yes

Only the study team can determine whether someone qualifies for participation.

Inclusion criteria

  • Medical students at the University of Greifswald
  • Going to take part in oral exams of human anatomy
  • Participants without previous anxiolytic medication
  • Participants without any experiences with acupuncture
  • Patients who have given written informed consent

Exclusion criteria

  • Local auricular skin infection
  • Pregnant or lactating women
  • Participants with prosthetic or damaged cardiac valves, intracardiac and intravascular shunts, hypertrophic cardiomyopathy and mitral valve prolapse (risk of bacterial endocarditis according to guidelines of AHA)
  • Participants who are unable to understand the consent form
  • History of psychiatric disease, alcohol and drug abuse

Treatment and study plan

Auricular Acupuncture

Device

Auricular acupuncture with indwelling permanent needles

Placebo acupuncture

Device

Placebo acupuncture with placebo needles

Primary outcomes

  1. Intensity of anxiety

    Time frame: 2 days

    State-Trait-Anxiety Inventory

Secondary outcomes

  1. heart rate

    Time frame: 1 day

  2. blood pressure

    Time frame: 1 day

Sponsors and collaborators

Lead sponsor

University Medicine Greifswald

Other

Registry information

Official study title

Auricular Acupuncture for Exam Anxiety in Medical Students: A Randomized Crossover Investigation

Acronym: AAAnx

Important dates

Study start
2012
Primary completion
2012
Study completion
2012
First posted
Sep 30, 2016
Registry last updated
Sep 30, 2016

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.

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