The Effect of Auriculotherapy On Sleep Quality in Pregnant Women with Sleep Disorder

Poor sleep quality during pregnancy could lead to adverse outcomes for the mother and fetus. Therefore, this study aimed to employ auriculotherapy to improve sleep quality in pregnant women and enhance pregnancy outcomes.

The present study was a one-blind randomized clinical trial carried out on 99 pregnant women (49 in the intervention group and 50 in the control group) with sleep disorders who were referred to the health center of the Tehran University of Medical Sciences. The intervention group underwent auriculotherapy for four weeks. In the control group, the ear seeds were placed on different points without pressure was applied on these points. The Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) questionnaire was completed for both groups before and 2 and 4 weeks after the intervention. Data were analyzed by the SPSS software using paired t-test and ANOVA. P<0.05 was considered significant.

The results showed that sleep quality scores in the control group were not significantly different between the three times (P<0.05). In the intervention group compared to the control, sleep quality scores improved significantly two and four weeks after the intervention (P<0.05).

Based on our findings, auriculotherapy can be used as an uncomplicated and effective method instead of harmful drug treatments to improve the sleep quality of pregnant women.