The effect of ear acupressure medicine at the “Shen Men” point on the nausea and vomiting during pregnancy

Introduction & Objective: Nausea and vomiting during pregnancy is one of the most common gastrointestinal disorders that more than 85% of pregnant women experience. However, controlling and treating this complication is still one of the most important issues in antenatal care. Therefore, the aim of this study was to investigate the effect of ear acupressure at Shen Men point on relieving nausea, vomiting and retching during pregnancy. Materials and Methods: In this quasi-experimental study, 100 pregnant women with a gestational age of less than 16 weeks attending the health clinics of Zabol city during 2019-2020 were studied in two control and intervention groups (n = 50 in each group). The samples in the intervention group were trained to apply pressure on their ears’ Shen Men point with the thumb for three minutes three times a day (morning, noon, and night), for a duration of one month. At the end of second and fourth weeks, the data were collected using the Rhodes index form and then, were analyzed by SPSS software version 22. Results: According to the results, there was no significant difference between the two groups in terms of age, gestational age, occupation and education. The difference in the mean scores of nausea, vomiting and retching was not statistically significant between the control and intervention groups before the study. But four weeks after the study, a significant difference was observed in the mean scores of vomiting, nausea and retching between the two groups, so that the mean scores of vomiting, nausea and retching were significantly lower in the intervention group than in the control group. Conclusion: The ear acupressure medicine at the Shen men point can be used as a non-invasive, safe and inexpensive method to relieve nausea, vomiting and retching during pregnancy. Keywords: Acupressure medicine, Shen Men, Vomiting, Pregnancy, Nausea, Retching, Rhodosis