A Comparative Study on the Effects of Acupressure at SP6 and ST36 Acupoints on the Pain Caused by Fistula Needle Placement in Hemodialysis Patients

Introduction: Hemodialysis is one of the most common treatment methods in kidney patients. To do this, repeated insertion of the needle into the vessel is necessary. Patients treated with hemodialysis are exposed to stress and pain caused by perforation of their arteriovenous fistula about 300 times a year. More than 1/5 of hemodialysis patients express this pain as unbearable. This study aims to evaluate the effect of acupressure at SP6 and ST36 acupoints on the pain caused by fistula needle placement in hemodialysis patients. Methods: This study is a double-blind randomized clinical trial conducted in 2016 on 90 hemodialysis patients with arteriovenous fistula in Mashhad, Iran. They were randomly divided into three groups of SP6, ST36, and control. Data were collected after obtaining a written informed consent by a demographic form and the Visual Analog Scale (VAS). Data analysis was performed in SPSS v.16 software by using Kolmogorov-Smirnov test, Kruskal-Wallis test, one-way ANOVA, paired t-test, and Chi-square test. Results: There was a statistically significant difference between VAS scores after the intervention in all three group (P<0.001). The mean VAS scores before the intervention in SP6, ST36, control groups were 54.47±18.93, 51.5±22.83, 46.6±17.73, respectively which changed to 45.63±20.53, 40.2±20.01, and 51.87±19.05 after the intervention, indicating that acupressure at SP6 and ST36 acupoints reduced pain in patients, while the pain increased in the control group.  Conclusion: Acupressure at SP6 and ST36 acupoints is an effective method in relieving pain caused by the insertion of a needle into the arteriovenous fistula in hemodialysis patients.