Korean J Rehabil Nurs.  2022 Jun;25(1):1-10. 0000-0002-8043-9667.

Effects of Auricular Acupressure on the Knee Pain, Joint Angle and Sleep among Elderly Workers with Knee Osteoarthritis: A Quasi-experimental Study

• Park H
• Lim Y

• KMID: 2530971
• DOI: http://doi.org/0000-0002-8043-9667

Abstract

Purpose
The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of auricular acupressure on the knee pain, joint angle and sleep among elderly workers with knee osteoarthritis.
Methods
This study conducted with a randomized, single-blind, and quasi-experimental design. Participants were 41 elderly workers with knee osteoarthritis and they were allocated to the experimental group (n=21) and sham control group (n=20). The intervention lasted six weeks. In order to examine intervention effects of auricular acupressure, Visual Analogue Scale (VAS), and extension, flexion, Pittsburg Sleep Quality Index (PSQI), Fitbit tracker were measured in order to examine the effects of auricular acupressure.
Results
Auricular acupressure was effective for knee pain relief after 6 weeks (F=2.83, p=.024). There was no difference in joint angle. Sleep quality was significantly affected by sleep duration (t=3.02, p=.004), habitual sleep efficiency (t=2.36, p=.029), and daytime dysfunction (t=2.16, p=.038), and the sleep stage was effective on slight sleep (t=2.19, p=.034).
Conclusion
The findings of this study suggest that auricular acupressure can be a complementary nursing intervention for the elderly workers with knee osteoarthritis to decrease knee pain and to improve sleeping disorder, and has advantages such as reduction of medical expenses, convenience, and high safety.

Keyword

Acupressure; Aged; Osteoarthritis; Pain; Sleep