The effect of acupressure on physiological parameters, anxiety and sleep quality in acute stroke patients: A randomized controlled trial

(XII + 143) Stroke is a medical emergency, with 25% of patients having a neurological worsening 24-48 hours after stroke. Safe and effective care provided to acute stroke patients is very important for the recovery process and prevention of complications. Symptoms such as irregular vital signs, poor sleep quality and anxiety play an important role in worsening the prognosis and the emergence of complications in patients with acute stroke. In this randomized controlled study, which was planned to investigate the effect of acupressure application, which was stated to be low in cost, easy to apply and effective, among the nursing interventions applied to relieve these symptoms or complications, the sample consisted of 64 patients (intervention= 32, placebo= 32). In the intervention group, a total of 6 acupressure applications were applied for 3 days with 12-hour intervals within the first 72 hours of the stroke, and sham acupressure was applied to the placebo group. The vital signs of the patients before and after each application, and their anxiety and sleep levels after each application were recorded. In data collection, "Patient Information Form", "National Institute of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS)", "Modified Barthel Activities of Daily Living (MBI)", "Spielberger State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI)", "Richard-Campbell Sleep Scale (RCUQ)" and "Physiological Parameters Evaluation Form" were used. While evaluating the data, descriptive statistics, independent t test, Mann Whitney U test, dependent t test, analysis of variance and Friedman test were used. After acupressure application, it was found that there was a statistically significant difference in the mean scores of state anxiety and RSS between the groups (p<0.05), the level of anxiety decreased and sleep quality increased. In addition, a statistically significant difference was found in DBP, pulse, respiration and oxygen saturation values between the groups after acupressure application (p<0.05). It is thought that acupressure can be an easy and effective application and can be used independently by nurses in the clinic. It can also be recommended as an adjunct to medical treatment for acute stroke patients. KEYWORDS: Acupressure, Anxiety, Physiological Parameter, Sleep Quality, Stroke