Abstract
OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of acupuncture on pain, prostaglandin E2 (PGE2), and interleukin-6 (IL-6) levels during septorhinoplasty surgeries. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This randomized, controlled study included 70 patients. The patients were divided into two groups: an acupuncture group (n = 35) and a control group (n = 35). The acupuncture group received bilateral press needle acupuncture at the PC 6 and ST 36 points 24 h before surgery. Blood samples were collected for analysis and comparison of preoperative and postoperative levels of IL-6 and PGE2. The primary outcomes were the postoperative visual analog scale (VAS) scores. RESULTS: In terms of evaluating postoperative pain, no statistically significant differences were observed between the study groups with regard to VAS scores. At 30 min after surgery, fewer patients in the acupuncture group needed analgesics than in the control group (p = 0.044). Postoperative IL-6 levels were lower in the acupuncture group than in the control group (p = 0.014). There was no significant difference in postoperative PGE2 levels between the groups (p = 0.568). The acupuncture group had lower diastolic blood pressure (DBP) and mean arterial blood pressure (MAP) at 30 min intraoperatively and lower DBP at 60 min (p = 0.012, p = 0.026, and p = 0.012, respectively). At 15 min into the operation, the heart rate was higher in the acupuncture group than in the control group (p = 0.039). After surgery, the acupuncture group had lower blood pressure at 5 min and 6 h after surgery than the control group (p = 0.034 and p = 0.041, respectively). CONCLUSIONS: The evidence from this study suggests that acupuncture can reduce the need for pain medication after septorhinoplasty surgery, and by decreasing IL-6 levels, it may contribute to the inflammatory process. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov: NCT04009070.