The journal of alternative and complementary medicine : research on paradigm, practice, and policy
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J Altern Complement Med · Jan 2011
Randomized Controlled TrialRelaxing on a bed of nails: an exploratory study of the effects on the autonomic, cardiovascular, and respiratory systems, and saliva cortisol.
This study investigated subjective and physiologic responses of lying on a bed of nails (BN) called the Shakti-mat and of listening to relaxing instructions and music. The BN has 6210 sharp-edge 5-mm plastic nails about 5 mm apart. ⋯ Healthy participants habituated to the induced pain on the BN and were able to subjectively relax. When on a BN, signs of both sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous system activity were observed. The pain may hypothetically have triggered a parasympathetic response.
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J Altern Complement Med · Dec 2010
Randomized Controlled Trial Comparative StudyA randomized controlled trial of intra-articular prolotherapy versus steroid injection for sacroiliac joint pain.
Controversy exists regarding the efficacy of ligament prolotherapy in alleviating sacroiliac joint pain. The inconsistent success rates reported in previous studies may be attributed to variability in patient selection and techniques between studies. It was hypothesized that intra-articular prolotherapy for patients with a positive response to diagnostic block may mitigate the drawbacks of ligament prolotherapy. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the efficacy and long-term effectiveness of intra-articular prolotherapy in relieving sacroiliac joint pain, compared with intra-articular steroid injection. ⋯ Intra-articular prolotherapy provided significant relief of sacroiliac joint pain, and its effects lasted longer than those of steroid injections. Further studies are needed to confirm the safety of the procedure and to validate an appropriate injection protocol.
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J Altern Complement Med · Oct 2010
Randomized Controlled TrialEffect of slow abdominal breathing combined with biofeedback on blood pressure and heart rate variability in prehypertension.
Prehypertension is a new category designated by the Seventh Report of the Joint National Committee on Prevention, Detection, Evaluation, and Treatment of High Blood Pressure (JNC7) in 2003. Managing prehypertension with nonpharmacological intervention is possibly beneficial to the prevention of hypertension. In this study, we observed the effect of slow abdominal breathing combined with electromyographic (EMG) biofeedback training on blood pressure (BP) in prehypertensives and assessed the changes of heart rate variability (HRV) in order to find an optional intervention to prevent hypertension and acquire some experimental data to clarify the underlying neural mechanism. ⋯ Slow abdominal breathing combined with EMG biofeedback is an effective intervention to manage prehypertension. The possible mechanism is that slow abdominal breathing combined with EMG biofeedback could reduce sympathetic activity and meanwhile could enhance vagal activity.
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J Altern Complement Med · Sep 2010
Randomized Controlled TrialA randomized trial of nature scenery and sounds versus urban scenery and sounds to reduce pain in adults undergoing bone marrow aspirate and biopsy.
Bone marrow aspiration and biopsy (BMAB) is painful when performed with only local anesthetic. Our objective was to determine whether viewing nature scenes and listening to nature sounds can reduce pain during BMAB. ⋯ We confirmed earlier findings showing that BMAB is poorly tolerated. While mean pain scores were not significantly different between the study arms, secondary analyses suggest that viewing a nature scene while listening to nature sounds is a safe, inexpensive method that may reduce pain during BMAB. This approach should be considered to alleviate pain during invasive procedures.
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J Altern Complement Med · Sep 2010
Randomized Controlled TrialChair massage for treating anxiety in patients withdrawing from psychoactive drugs.
Therapeutic massage has been proven to be an effective, nonpharmacologic, alternative for managing state and trait anxiety in a variety of clinical situations. However, no controlled study has investigated this effect in an addiction treatment setting. ⋯ Within the clinical context of this study, chair massage was more effective that relaxation control in reducing anxiety. Further investigation of chair massage as a potential nonpharmacologic adjunct in the management of withdrawal related anxiety is warranted.