N/A N=60 Randomized Supportive Care

Preoperative Acupuncture for Total Knee or Hip Arthroplasty

Knee Arthropathy · Hip Arthropathy · Anxiety

Bottom Line

View on ClinicalTrials.gov: NCT06099223 ↗

Enrolled (actual)

Serious AEs

0.0%

Results posted

Mar 2025

Primary outcome: Primary: Perioperative Anxiety — 60.73; 28.90 score on a scale — p=<0.001

Study Design & Population

Study type: Interventional
Phase: N/A
Interventions: Acupuncture needles (Device)
Age: Adult, Older Adult · 18+ yrs
Sex: All
Sponsor: Hartford Hospital
Primary completion: Apr 2023

Outcome Measures

Outcome	Result	p-value
PRIMARY Perioperative Anxiety	60.73; 28.90	<0.001 sig
PRIMARY Postoperative Pain in the First 3 Postoperative Hours	1.93; 2.79	0.029 sig
SECONDARY Patient Satisfaction With Acupuncture Procedure	22	—
SECONDARY Preoperative Pain	4.97; 2.90	<0.001 sig
SECONDARY Opioid Consumption	45.51; 52.46	0.38
SECONDARY Midazolam Use as Anxiolytic Medications	3.96; 4.21	0.61
SECONDARY Patient Satisfaction Scale With Overall Care	21; 24	0.37
SECONDARY Occurrence of Nausea and Vomiting at First Postoperative Hour	0; 4; 30; 26	0.11
SECONDARY Antiemetic Medications	0.0; 0.0	0.37
SECONDARY Hospital Length of Stay	29.5; 29.0	0.38
SECONDARY Postoperative Pain Upon Arrival to the PACU	0.47; 1.38	0.087
SECONDARY Postoperative Pain at 1 Postoperative Hour	1.67; 2.45	0.147
SECONDARY Postoperative Pain After 3 Postoperative Hours	3.67; 4.55	0.098
SECONDARY Number of Participants That Received Midazolam Dose >2mg	19; 22	0.41
SECONDARY Patient's Satisfaction With Pain Management	19; 20	0.79
SECONDARY Patient's Satisfaction With Anxiety Management	21; 19	0.58
SECONDARY Acupuncture Patients Who Were Likely to Consider Acupuncture for Future Surgeries	25	—
SECONDARY Occurrence of Nausea and Vomiting After 3 Postoperative Hours	5; 5; 25; 25	1.00
SECONDARY Postoperative Pain in the First 3 Postoperative Hours (Group X Time)	0.47; 1.38; 1.67; 2.45; 3.67; 4.55	0.919

Summary

Open-label, randomized controlled trial to determine the effect of preoperative acupuncture on preoperative anxiety and postoperative pain for high-anxiety patients undergoing total hip or knee arthroplasty. The hypothesis is that preoperative acupuncture will reduce preoperative anxiety, reduce postoperative pain, reduce postoperative nausea and vomiting, reduce opioid consumption, and improve patient satisfaction.

Eligibility Criteria

Inclusion Criteria

Female (age 52 to 85) or male (age 18-85) patients undergoing Total Knee Arthroplasty or Total Hip Arthroplasty at the Bone-and Joint Institute at Hartford Hospital
Patients classified as high-anxiety based on having a score of >10 on the Amsterdam Preoperative Anxiety and Information Scale (APAIS-A-T). The APAIS-A-T is a modified survey that reliably quantifies total preoperative anxiety using summed scores for anesthesia and surgery-related anxiety; a minimum score of 11 is the most accurate cutoff to identify patients with anxiety

Exclusion Criteria

Unable to give consent
Uncontrolled diabetes (HbA1c ≥ 8.0%)
Infection at any of the acupuncture points
Known allergy to metals
Abnormal laboratory blood work values (INR>1.5, if available; platelet count 1.5) and/or on current anticoagulant use which increases bleeding risk.
Non-English speaking
Revision TKA or THA
Women of reproductive age or under the age of 52 years old, as acupuncture is not recommended during pregnancy. They were excluded due to the potential conflict between our institute's standard timing for pregnancy tests on the day of surgery and the scheduled preoperative acupuncture session for the study, to avoid unwanted delays in the operating room schedule.

View full record on ClinicalTrials.gov →

Data sourced from ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT06099223). Outcome figures and adverse-event rates are extracted automatically from the registry's posted results and are provided for clinician reference, not as a substitute for the primary publication.