The Effect of Acupuncture on Anxiety and Working Memory

National University of Health Sciences

Status: Completed

Conditions: Anxiety; Memory Impairment

Treatments: Procedure: Acupuncture

Study type: Interventional

Funder types: Other

Identifiers

NCT01492738

NUHS H1011

Details and patient eligibility

About

This study endeavors to examine the relationship between acupuncture, anxiety, and performance on a test of working memory. In the study, all participants will complete the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI) survey to determine how anxious they are at the moment and how anxious they tend to be in general. Then ½ of subjects will receive acupuncture for 20 minutes and ½ will rest quietly for 20 minutes. After this period, all subjects will again complete the STAI survey. Then all subjects will complete the Automated Operations Span Task (AOSPAN) which is a computerized test of working memory. Statistical analysis will be performed to determine if acupuncture had any effect on State-level anxiety and on performance on the AOSPAN.

Enrollment: 90 patients

Sex: All

Ages: 18 to 30 years old

Volunteers: Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Inclusion criteria

• Undergraduate University student
• Fluent in English
• Willing to receive acupuncture
• Aged 18-30
• In good health
• Not pregnant
• Not breastfeeding

Exclusion criteria

• Not an Undergraduate University student
• Not fluent in English
• Unwilling to receive acupuncture
• Under 18 years of age or older than 30 years of age
• Chronic disease
• Pregnant
• Breastfeeding

Trial design

Primary purpose: Treatment

Allocation: Randomized

Interventional model: Parallel Assignment

Masking: None (Open label)

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90 participants in 2 patient groups

Control Group

No Intervention group

Description:

Participants will be asked to make themselves comfortable lying on a massage table for 20 minutes.

Acupuncture group

Active Comparator group

Description:

Acupuncture group will receive one acupuncture treatment for twenty minutes.

Treatment:

Procedure: Acupuncture