The Stimulation Effect of Auricular Magnetic Press Pellets on Older Female Adults with Sleep Disturbance Undergoing Polysomnographic Evaluation

Study Objectives. To examine the stimulation effect of auricular magnetic press pellet therapy on older female adults with sleep disturbance as determined by polysomnography (PSG). Design. Randomized, single-blind, experimental-controlled, parallel-group. Setting. Community. Participants. Twenty-seven older female adults with sleep disturbance according to the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) >5 for at least 3 months were recruited. Participants were screened by both the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) and the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE), as well as polysomnography prior to randomization. Interventions. All eligible participants were randomly allocated into the experimental or control group. Both groups were taped with magnetic press pellet on auricular points for 3 weeks. The experimental group was treated by applying pressure on the magnetic press pellets 3 times per day while no stimulation was applied on the control group. Measurements and Results. Both groups were measured by PSG and PSQI at the beginning of the study and 3 weeks after the study. Both groups showed improvements on PSQI scores compared to the baseline. One-way analysis of covariance adjusted for baseline scores showed that significant improvements of PSG-derived sleep parameters, such as sleep efficiency, were found in the experimental group. However, no significant differences between groups were observed in the proportion of sleep stages with the exception of Stage 2. Conclusions. Auricular therapy using magnetic pellets and stimulation by pressing was more effective in improving the sleep quality compared to auricular therapy without any stimulation.