Effect of Auriculotherapy on the Anxiety of Women After Cesarean Section: A Clinical Trial

Anxiety after cesarean section can delay the recovery process of mothers after delivery. Auriculotherapy as a complementary medicine may be beneficial in reducing maternal anxiety.

This study assesses auriculotherapy’s effect on women’s anxiety after cesarean section.

This randomized controlled clinical trial was conducted on 68 women after cesarean section in a teaching hospital in Rasht City, Iran. The mothers were assigned into intervention groups (n=34) and control (n=34). In the intervention group, auriculotherapy was performed by Vaccaria seeds on 1 point in the left ear and 5 points in the right ear. The mothers’ anxiety was measured by the Spielberger state-trait anxiety inventory (STAI) before, 3, and 10 days after the intervention. The collected data were analyzed by using the independent t-test, Fisher exact test, and repeated measures ANOVA. Analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) was also used to compare the STAI score between the two groups after the intervention. The significance level was set at 0.05.

The Mean±SD age of the participants was 31.8±7.2 years. In the intervention group, no significant difference was found in the state and trait anxiety scores from baseline to day 3 after the intervention. However, their mean scores were significantly reduced on the 10th day after the intervention compared to the scores at baseline and day 3 (P=0.001). In the control group, the mean state anxiety score on the third day was significantly higher than at baseline and day 10 (P=0.001, η2=0.249). At the same time, there was no significant difference in trait anxiety scores from the baseline to the third day. However, these values increased on day 10 (P=0.001). According to the ANCOVA results, the adjusted means of state and trait anxiety in the intervention group were lower than in the control group on the 3rd and 10th days; these values decreased more from the third to the tenth day (P=0.001, η2=0.829).

Auriculotherapy effectively reduces mothers’ anxiety after cesarean section. Therefore, health service providers, especially midwives, can use this complementary medicine to reduce mothers’ anxiety.