Introduction:Vaccination is the most common painful procedure in childhood and its pain control is important. This study was conducted with the aim of investigating the effect of acupressure at the P6 point on the severity of pain and anxiety caused by vaccination in 6-year-old children.
Methods:The present study was a randomized controlled field trial study conducted in 2022 on 80 healthy 6-year-old children referred to health centers in birjand for the DTP vaccine injection. Children were randomly assigned to two groups of acupressure at the P6 point and control. Data collection tools: included a personal information form and a visual analogue scale (VAS) and the observational scale of anxiety caused by therapeutic procedures in children revised (OSBD-R). Data were analyzed using Kolmogorov, Smirnov,and Mann-Whitney tests in SPSS 16 version 16 software. A p value of less than 0.05 was considered significant.
Findings:There was no significant difference in pain intensity after vaccination in the two groups. After vaccination, the mean pain intensity score in the acupressure group was 3.12±1.4 and the control group was 3.35±1.39. (P=0.28). Also,the mean anxiety score in the acupressure group was 0.98±0.83 and 1.95±1.22 in the control group. (P<0.001). Therefore, anxiety in the acupressure group was significantly lower than in the control group.
Conclusion:No statistically significant difference was observed between the mean pain intensity in the two study groups, but acupressure at point P6 was effective in reducing anxiety caused by vaccination in 6-year-old children, so it can be used to reduce anxiety during vaccination of children.