Acupuncture for Prevention of Itch in Caesarean Section

May 30, 2025 updated by: Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust

Acupuncture for the Prevention of Intrathecal Diamorphine-induced Itch in Elective Caesarean Section: A Randomised Controlled Trial

This study aims to determine the effectiveness of using a commercially available acupuncture stud at the LI11 acupuncture point at reducing the severity of itch caused by intrathecal diamorphine in elective caesarean section.

Study Overview

Status

Status

Indicates the current recruitment status or the expanded access status.
Completed

Conditions

Conditions

The disease, disorder, syndrome, illness, or injury that is being studied. On ClinicalTrials.gov, conditions may also include other health-related issues, such as lifespan, quality of life, and health risks.

Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.

Detailed Description

Itch is a very common complication of diamorphine used in spinal anaesthesia for caesarean section with a local incidence of 78%. It ranges from irritating to distressing and difficult to treat and can adversely affect maternal satisfaction, wellbeing and bonding with their baby.

This trial aims to determine whether acupuncture using a commercially-available acupuncture stud at the LI11 point reduces the incidence and severity of post-operative itching in patients undergoing elective caesarean section under spinal anaesthesia with intrathecal diamorphine.

80 women having a planned caesarean section under spinal anaesthesia will be recruited by informed consent and randomised to the intervention group or the control group. The intervention group will receive an acupuncture stud at the LI11 point on either arm and the control group will receive acupuncture with a similar stud containing a smaller needle at a non-acupuncture point on either arm. The stud can be left in-situ until the followup visit the following morning or removed earlier at the participants discretion. All other care will be the usual clinical care including access to anti-itching drugs as required. Participants will be visited by a member of the research team at 3-5 hours following the start of their spinal anaesthetic and asked to mark their itch on an 11 point visual analogue scale (VAS). They will also be visited by a member of the research team the following morning, asked to rate their worst itch on the same scale and asked how troublesome they have found their itch (none, mild, moderate, severe). The administration of any anti-itch drugs will be recorded and if the acupuncture stud has not been removed it will be removed at this time.

If effective, acupuncture with an acupuncture stud would provide an acceptable, convenient, safe and cost-effective treatment.

Study Type

Study Type

Describes the nature of a clinical study. Study types include interventional studies (also called clinical trials), observational studies (including patient registries), and expanded access.
Interventional

Enrollment (Actual)

Enrollment

The number of participants in a clinical study. The "anticipated" enrollment is the target number of participants that the researchers need for the study.
80

Phase

Phase

The stage of a clinical trial studying a drug or biological product, based on definitions developed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The phase is based on the study's objective, the number of participants, and other characteristics. There are five phases: Early Phase 1 (formerly listed as Phase 0), Phase 1, Phase 2, Phase 3, and Phase 4. Not Applicable is used to describe trials without FDA-defined phases, including trials of devices or behavioral interventions.
  • Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Locations

  • United Kingdom
    • South Yorkshire
      • Sheffield, South Yorkshire, United Kingdom, S10 2JF
        • Royal Hallamshire Hospital

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

The key requirements that people who want to participate in a clinical study must meet or the characteristics they must have. Eligibility criteria consist of both inclusion criteria (which are required for a person to participate in the study) and exclusion criteria (which prevent a person from participating). Types of eligibility criteria include whether a study accepts healthy volunteers, has age or age group requirements, or is limited by sex.

Ages Eligible for Study

18 years and older (Adult, Older Adult)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • ASA1-3 patients with uncomplicated pregnancies undergoing elective caesarean section with a plan for spinal anaesthesia with intrathecal diamorphine.

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Age under 18.
  • Pre-existing itch or conditions associated with itch (eg cholestasis of pregnancy).
  • Pre-existing use of H1 receptor antagonists, non-selective antihistamines or ursodeoxycholic acid.
  • Severe perioperative complication or fetal death.
  • Conversion to general anaesthesia.
  • Unable to understand written and spoken English.

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: Prevention
  • Allocation: Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
  • Masking: Single

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm

Participant Group / Arm

A group or subgroup of participants in a clinical trial that receives a specific intervention/treatment, or no intervention, according to the trial's protocol.
Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.
Experimental: Intervention
1.5mm Seirin Pyonex needle at LI11 point
Device: Seirin Pyonex press needle acupuncture
Acupuncture
Sham Comparator: Control
0.3mm Seirin Pyonex needle at TB10 point
Device: Seirin Pyonex press needle acupuncture
Acupuncture

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Primary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, the planned outcome measure that is the most important for evaluating the effect of an intervention/treatment. Most clinical studies have one primary outcome measure, but some have more than one.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Presence or absence of itch
Time Frame: between 3 and 5 hours post injection of spinal anaesthetic
Presence or absence of itch
between 3 and 5 hours post injection of spinal anaesthetic

Secondary Outcome Measures

Secondary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, a planned outcome measure that is not as important as the primary outcome measure for evaluating the effect of an intervention but is still of interest. Most clinical studies have more than one secondary outcome measure.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Severity of itch on 11 point VAS scale
Time Frame: between 3 and 5 hours post injection of spinal anaesthetic
Severity of itch on 11 point VAS scale
between 3 and 5 hours post injection of spinal anaesthetic
Severity of worst overall itch on 11 point VAS scale
Time Frame: At a follow up visit the next day following the spinal anaesthetic
Severity of worst overall itch on 11 point VAS scale
At a follow up visit the next day following the spinal anaesthetic

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Sponsor

The organization or person who initiates the study and who has authority and control over the study.
Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust

Collaborators

Collaborators

An organization other than the sponsor that provides support for a clinical study. This support may include activities related to funding, design, implementation, data analysis, or reporting.
Obstetric Anaesthetists' Association United Kingdom

Investigators

Investigators

A researcher involved in a clinical study. Related terms include site principal investigator, site sub-investigator, study chair, study director, and study principal investigator.
  • Principal Investigator: Tim Orr, Dr, Trainee Anaesthesia (CT1-ST6)

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Actual)

Study Start

The actual date on which the first participant was enrolled in a clinical study. The "anticipated" study start date is the date that the researchers think will be the study start date.
February 12, 2018

Primary Completion (Actual)

Primary Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention to collect final data for the primary outcome measure. Whether the clinical study ended according to the protocol or was terminated does not affect this date. For clinical studies with more than one primary outcome measure with different completion dates, this term refers to the date on which data collection is completed for all the primary outcome measures. The "anticipated" primary completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the primary completion date for the study.
November 15, 2018

Study Completion (Actual)

Study Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention/treatment to collect final data for the primary outcome measures, secondary outcome measures, and adverse events (that is, the last participant's last visit). The "anticipated" study completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the study completion date.
November 15, 2018

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

First Submitted

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submitted a study record to ClinicalTrials.gov. There is typically a delay of a few days between the first submitted date and the record's availability on ClinicalTrials.gov (the first posted date).
February 22, 2018

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submits a study record that is consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. The sponsor or investigator may need to revise and submit a study record one or more times before NLM's QC review criteria are met. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
March 7, 2018

First Posted (Actual)

First Posted

The date on which the study record was first available on ClinicalTrials.gov after National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review has concluded. There is typically a delay of a few days between the date the study sponsor or investigator submitted the study record and the first posted date.
March 8, 2018

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

Last Update Posted

The most recent date on which changes to a study record were made available on ClinicalTrials.gov. There may be a delay between when the changes were submitted to ClinicalTrials.gov by the study's sponsor or investigator (the last update submitted date) and the last update posted date.
June 4, 2025

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator submitted changes to a study record that are consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
May 30, 2025

Last Verified

Last Verified

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator confirmed the information about a clinical study on ClinicalTrials.gov as accurate and current. If a study with a recruitment status of recruiting; not yet recruiting; or active, not recruiting has not been confirmed within the past 2 years, the study's recruitment status is shown as unknown.
May 1, 2025

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

Other Study ID Numbers

Identifiers or ID numbers other than the NCT number that are assigned to a clinical study by the study's sponsor, funders, or others. These numbers may include unique identifiers from other trial registries and National Institutes of Health grant numbers.
  • STH20078

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

NO

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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