Electro-Acupuncture in Relieving Labor Pain

Electro-Acupuncture in Relieving Labor Pain
Received October 12, 2005; Accepted July 5, 2006.
Published online 2006 August 17
Fan Qu and Jue Zhou
Evidence-based Complementary and Alternative Medicine (eCAM)
PubMed Central

Copyright © 2006 The Author(s).

Heilongjiang University of Chinese Medicine Harbin China

Corresponding author.

For reprints and all correspondence: Fan Qu, Jue Zhou, Heilongjiang Institute of Water Resources and Hydropower No.78-1 in Yanxing Road, Nangang District, Harbin, Heilongjiang Province, 150080 China. Tel: +86-13796069683; Email: qufan43@yahoo.com.cn

This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/2.0/uk/) which permits unrestricted non-commerical use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Abstract

To study the efficacy of electro-acupuncture for the relief of labor pain, and to build a better understanding of how electro-acupuncture might influence the neuroendocrine system, 36 primiparas were randomly divided into an electro-acupuncture group and a control group. Assessments of pain intensity and degree of relaxation during labor were analyzed. The differences between the electro-acupuncture group and the control group on the concentration of β-endorphin (β-EP) and 5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT) in the peripheral blood were compared. The electro-acupuncture group was found to exhibit a lower pain intensity and a better degree of relaxation than the control group (p = 0.018; p = 0.031). There existed a significant difference in the concentration of β-EP and 5-HT in the peripheral blood between the two groups at the end of the first stage (p = 0.037; p = 0.030). Electro-acupuncture was found to be an effective alternative or complementary therapy in the relief of pain during labor. The benefit of electro-acupuncture for relieving labor pain may be based on the mechanism of producing a synergism of the central nervous system (CNS) with a direct impact on the uterus through increasing the release of β-EP and 5-HT into the peripheral blood.

Keywords: electro-acupuncture, labor pain, β-endorphin (β-EP), 5-hydroxytryptamine(5-HT)

BackgroundPain relief during labor is an essential aspect of obstetrical care. Presently, there is no standard method available that delivers excellent pain control without having adverse side effects on the mother or the fetus. Labor pain may cause anxiety and exhaustion to mothers in labor and can have a negative influence on the progress of labor. If more oxygen is administered then a high level of catecholamines may be observed in the placenta.

In recent years, there has been an increasing demand among parturients, especially with primiparas, for non-pharmacological analgesia during childbirth and many have expressed a willingness to receive electro-acupuncture treatment during childbirth. Although numerous positive descriptive and retrospective reports on acupuncture for reducing pain and suffering during labor have been published over the previous decades[1,2], it was not until 2002[3,4] and 2003[5] that the first 3 randomized controlled trials of acupuncture for pain relief in labor were published. The aim of this study was to investigate how electro-acupuncture affected labor pain and determine its possible mechanisms. That is, does electro-acupuncture affect labor pain and produce any mechanism of synergism within the central nervous system (CNS) through the increase of the release of β-endorphin (β-EP) and 5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT) into the peripheral blood [6]. In addition, does electro-acupuncture have a direct impact on the uterus?

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