Can acupuncture affect the circadian rhythm of blood pressure? A randomized, double-blind, controlled trial.
OBJECTIVE
The objective of the study was to investigate the effect of acupuncture on the circadian rhythm of blood pressure (BP) in patients with hypertension.


METHODS
The study was designed as a randomized, double-blind, controlled trial. Subjects were randomly divided into an active acupuncture group and a sham acupuncture group. Each patient received real or sham acupuncture treatment twice a week for 8 weeks. Acupuncture needles were inserted at bilateral ST 36 plus PC 6; placebo points.


METHODS
Thirty-three (33) patients with essential hypertension were the subjects.


METHODS
Twenty-four (24)-hour ambulatory BP was assessed before and after treatment.


RESULTS
After the treatment period, there was a significant increase in nocturnal diastolic BP dipping compared to that at baseline (10.20±7.56 mm Hg versus 5.21±10.19 mm Hg, p=0.038) in the active acupuncture group but not in the sham acupuncture group. The nocturnal diastolic BP dipping response to active acupuncture treatment was significantly different from the response seen with the sham acupuncture treatment (p=0.041). The number of dippers also increased from 4 to 8 in the active acupuncture group. Average systolic and diastolic BP was not changed significantly except for nighttime diastolic BP (90.32±11.47 mm Hg to 87.83±9.16 mm Hg, p=0.041).


CONCLUSIONS
It is suggested that acupuncture treatment could be useful for improving the circadian rhythm of BP in patients with hypertension.
Department of Cardiovascular & Neurologic Diseases, College of Oriental Medicine, Kyung Hee University, Seoul, Korea.
Hye-Mi
HM
Kim
Seung-Yeon
SY
Cho
Seong-Uk
SU
Park
Il-Suk
IS
Sohn
Woo-Sang
WS
Jung
Sang-Kwan
SK
Moon
Jung-Mi
JM
Park
Chang-Nam
CN
Ko
Ki-Ho
KH
Cho
D015669:Acupuncture Points; D015670:Acupuncture Therapy; D000328:Adult; D001794:Blood Pressure / Q000502:physiology*; D002940:Circadian Rhythm / Q000502:physiology*; D004311:Double-Blind Method; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D006973:Hypertension / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000628:therapy*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged