1. Pilot study of acupuncture to treat anxiety in children and adolescents.
- Author
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Leung, Brenda, Takeda, Wendy, and Holec, Victoria
- Subjects
ACUPUNCTURE ,ANXIETY in children ,GENERALIZED anxiety disorder ,ANXIETY treatment ,RANDOMIZED controlled trials ,THERAPEUTICS ,ANXIETY disorders treatment ,AGE distribution ,COMPARATIVE studies ,RESEARCH methodology ,MEDICAL cooperation ,PATIENT compliance ,PROGNOSIS ,PSYCHOLOGICAL tests ,QUALITY of life ,REFERENCE values ,RESEARCH ,RISK assessment ,SEX distribution ,PILOT projects ,EVALUATION research ,ANXIETY disorders ,TREATMENT effectiveness ,BLIND experiment ,SEVERITY of illness index - Abstract
Aim: This pilot study investigated the use of acupuncture in the treatment of paediatric anxiety.Methods: Children with anxiety, aged 8-16, were randomised to either the acupuncture or waitlist control groups. Anxiety was measured using the Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale (HAM-A) for children and adolescents with generalised anxiety disorder and Multidimensional Anxiety Scale for Children 2nd Edition (MASC-2) self-rated and parent-rated forms.Results: Twenty participants were enrolled in the study and 19 completed all the questionnaires to be included in the analysis. There were no differences in socio-demographic characteristics at baseline between the two groups. At the second assessment, the mean MASC-parent score for the acupuncture group was significantly lower than the waitlist group (65.6 (SD 15.0) compared to 81.0 (SD 11.9), P = 0.025) with an effect size = 1.13. The pre- and post-treatment comparisons were also significantly lower for both groups in the anxiety measures. In the acupuncture group, MASC-parent (P = 0.008, effect size 0.75) and the HAM-A (P < 0.001, effect size 1.4). In the waitlist group, MASC-self (P = 0.022; effect size 0.4), MASC-parent (P = 0.048; effect size 0.75) and HAM-A (P = 0.007; effect size 1.21).Conclusions: This study provided promising results on the potential use of acupuncture to treat children and adolescents with general anxiety. Future research using a randomised control trial with a sufficient sample size to control for confounders and sham (placebo) comparators is warranted. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]- Published
- 2018
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