Eficácia da auriculoterapia para a ansiedade em adultos: uma revisão sistemática

Abstract

Introduction: Anxiety disorders have become increasingly common in people's lives. Some integrative and complementary practices have been carried out to overcome these altered emotional states and, among these practices, auriculotherapy has stood out, with positive results in the treatment of various psychosomatic disorders. Objective: To analyze the effectiveness of auriculotherapy with seeds and needles in reducing anxiety symptoms in adults. Materials and methods: This is a systematic review that followed the PRISMA statement (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses) and the Cochrane Handbook for Systematic Reviews of Interventions. The search strategy was carried out in the main databases, using terms such as "Acupuncture"; "Auriculotherapy"; "Anxiety"; "Anxiety Disorder; "Clinical Trial", to filter studies published in all languages until November 2022. The primary outcome was anxiety symptoms. Two authors independently selected and analyzed the studies using Rayyan software, as well as data extraction, which was done using a pre-structured form. Disagreements during the process were resolved by consensus and by a third author specialized in acupuncture. The Physiotherapy Evidence Database (PEdro) tool was used to analyze the risk of bias. The overall quality of the evidence was assessed by the Grade of Recommendation, Assessment, Development, and Evaluation (GRADE). The Cochrane Review Manager software (RevMan 5.3) was used for statistical analysis. Results: A total of 1,382 studies were identified in the databases. Of these, 20 studies were included in the review, as they used auriculotherapy with seeds and needles to reduce anxiety in adults. Only 1 study showed no significant difference in any state (F = 0.243, p = 0.701) or anxiety trait (x2 = 27.220, p = 0.335), in relation to anxiety reduction. Conclusion: This systematic review allows us to affirm that auriculoacupuncture, with seeds or needles, is an effective practice for reducing anxiety levels in adults when compared to the control or placebo group.