A Pilot Study of Auricular Acupressure to Enhance Prehabilitation Benefits in Candidates for Thoracic Surgery

What this Trial Is About

Researchers are evaluating the use of auricular acupressure to enhance overall health and prehabilitation benefits in patients preparing for major lung surgery. This study focuses on adults aged 50 years or older who are candidates for lung procedures such as wedge resection, segmentectomy, lobectomy, bilobectomy, or pneumonectomy. Auricular acupuncture, which targets specific points on the ear, has shown benefits in managing pain, sleep disturbances, fatigue, and mood issues, making it a promising approach for preoperative support. Participants will be randomly assigned to either an experimental group receiving auricular acupressure at specific therapeutic points or a control group receiving sham acupressure at non-therapeutic points. The acupressure seeds will be placed during a clinic visit, with instructions given to the patient and their care partner on how to press the seeds to apply pressure for two minutes per point. The seeds are removed before the patient leaves the clinic. This intervention is designed to be used during a prehabilitation period lasting at least two weeks before surgery. During the study, patients and their care partners will participate in seed placement and pressing as demonstrated by the research staff. The study will monitor enrollment numbers over two weeks and assess the ease of participation by the end of four weeks. Patients must be able to perform spirometry testing and have access to a smartphone for communication and image sharing. The study includes follow-up assessments focused on the patient's ability to take part in the intervention and the overall impact on prehabilitation efforts.

Auricular Acupressure in Prehabilitation