Reiki and Physiological Consequences of Acute Stress

灵气和急性压力的生理后果

• 批准号: 6989219
• 负责人: JOAN E.B. FOX
• 金额: $ 19.31万
• 依托单位: CLEVELAND CLINIC LERNER COM-CWRU
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 财政年份: 2005
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2005-09-30 至 2008-08-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/6989219
• 关键词: alternative medicine; catecholamines; clinical research; clinical trials; cortisol; dehydroepiandrosterone; heart rate; hormone biosynthesis; human subject; human therapy evaluation; melatonin; natural killer cells; physiology; platelet activation; platelet factor 4; psychoneuroimmunology; stress; stress management; sympathetic nervous system

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Energy healing therapies such as Reiki are becoming popular. Reiki is a spiritual practice that involves physical touch and social contact with an empathetic person; unlike many relaxation therapies, Reiki requires no participation by the patient. These features make Reiki particularly attractive in the hospital setting, where patients are often extremely anxious, depressed, in pain, or sedated. In this setting, stress can be associated with increased pain, cardiovascular reactivity, decreased wound healing, increased susceptibility to infectious disease, increased post-surgical complications, and increased length-of-stay. Although Reiki is commonly used in the hospital setting to reduce pain or pre-surgical anxiety, there are few studies demonstrating benefits. Remarkably, no information is available on physiological changes induced during a Reiki session. In the absence of such information, it is difficult to make rational predictions concerning situations in which it may be beneficial. Moreover, given the deep state of relaxation often reported by clients, we cannot exclude the possibility that it may have a potential for harm in certain medical situations. Our primary research questions are to determine whether physiological changes are induced during a Reiki session and whether a Reiki session affects responses to a subsequent acute stressor. Secondary research questions include assessing which benefits result from placebo, empathetic intentions, or unique abilities of "attuned" Reiki practitioners and assessing background characteristics associated with acceptance and responsiveness. Based on its use to reduce pain and anxiety, a potential mechanism by which Reiki might exert effects is at the level of affecting emotional centers of the brain with resulting decreases in activity of the SNS and other stress pathways. To assess these possibilities, we will perform a randomized, controlled, blinded study with four groups of 80 healthy volunteers. In Specific Aim 1, we will assess changes in physiological markers of sympathetic, parasympathetic, and HPA activation, brain activity, and psychological well-being before and after a 30-min session of Reiki, as compared to control groups. In Specific Aim 2, we will assess the ability of Reiki to affect psychological, sympathetic, parasympathetic, HPA, immune function, and platelet activation responses to an ensuing 5-min acute laboratory stressor. The use of supine-control, neutral sham, and empathetic sham groups will allow us to gain insights into mechanisms by which Reiki effects are mediated. Interactions between baseline characteristics and treatment effects will be assessed. Information obtained from the proposed studies will provide detailed information on physiological pathways affected by Reiki. This information is critical if we are to make rational decisions on potential situations in which Reiki sessions may provide benefits and those in which there may be the potential for harm. Should Reiki decrease stress pathways or reduce physiological responses to stressful situations, it could be a powerful adjunct to traditional medicine and have enormous health and economic impact.

描述（由申请人提供）：能量治疗，如灵气正在变得流行。灵气是一种精神实践，涉及身体接触和社会接触与一个有同情心的人;不像许多放松疗法，灵气不需要病人的参与。这些特点使灵气在医院环境中特别有吸引力，在那里病人往往非常焦虑，抑郁，疼痛，或镇静。在这种情况下，压力可能与疼痛增加、心血管反应性、伤口愈合减少、感染性疾病易感性增加、术后并发症增加和住院时间增加有关。虽然灵气通常用于医院环境中，以减少疼痛或术前焦虑，但很少有研究证明其益处。值得注意的是，没有关于灵气治疗期间引起的生理变化的信息。在缺乏这种信息的情况下，很难对可能有益的情况作出合理的预测。此外，鉴于客户经常报告的深度放松状态，我们不能排除在某些医疗情况下可能存在潜在危害的可能性。我们的主要研究问题是确定在灵气会议期间是否会引起生理变化，以及灵气会议是否会影响对随后急性应激源的反应。次要的研究问题包括评估安慰剂，移情意图或“调谐”灵气从业者的独特能力带来的好处，以及评估与接受和响应相关的背景特征。基于其用于减少疼痛和焦虑，灵气可能发挥作用的潜在机制是影响大脑的情感中心，从而减少SNS和其他压力途径的活动。为了评估这些可能性，我们将对四组80名健康志愿者进行随机、对照、盲法研究。在具体目标1中，我们将评估交感神经，副交感神经和HPA激活，大脑活动和心理健康的生理标志物在灵气30分钟会话之前和之后的变化，与对照组相比。在具体目标2中，我们将评估灵气影响心理，交感神经，副交感神经，HPA，免疫功能和血小板活化反应的能力，以应对随后的5分钟急性实验室应激。使用仰卧控制，中性假，和移情假组将使我们能够深入了解灵气效应的介导机制。将评估基线特征和治疗效果之间的相互作用。从拟议研究中获得的信息将提供有关受灵气影响的生理途径的详细信息。这些信息是至关重要的，如果我们要作出合理的决定，在潜在的情况下，灵气会议可能提供的好处和那些可能有潜在的伤害。如果灵气减少压力途径或减少对压力情况的生理反应，它可能是传统医学的有力辅助，并对健康和经济产生巨大影响。