Kang, D.-H., Kim, J.-Y., Park, Y.-C., Yoo, H.-R., Jung, I. C. · Medicine · 2023
This is a published trial protocol (not yet reporting results) describing a planned randomized, assessor-blind trial comparing EFT combined with acupuncture versus acupuncture alone for psychiatric symptoms in 80 Parkinson's disease patients over 12 weeks.
If this planned trial eventually shows benefit, picture someone with Parkinson's managing not just tremor but anxiety and depression too, gaining a self-administered technique they could use themselves between clinic visits, an additional layer of relief added onto acupuncture they may already be receiving. But this is only a plan for a trial right now; nothing has been tested yet, so no picture of impact should be drawn beyond that possibility.
Once this trial reports, the interesting mechanistic question is whether adding EFT to acupuncture affects Parkinson's psychiatric symptoms through a pathway distinct from dopaminergic circuits already altered by the disease — perhaps via autonomic/HRV shifts or cortisol reduction — and whether sleep and fatigue improve in step with mood rather than separately. Adding cortisol and inflammatory panels in a later arm (Parkinson's involves neuroinflammation) could clarify whether calming the nervous system also nudges the disease's biological substrate.
| Design | Randomized trial |
|---|---|
| Participants | 80 people |
| Population | patients with Parkinson's disease experiencing psychiatric symptoms (planned trial) |
| Comparison group | acupuncture alone group |
| Outcome measures | Beck Depression Inventory (planned primary outcome), Parkinson's disease sleep scale, State-Trait Anxiety Inventory, Fatigue, Resistance, Ambulation, Illnesses, and Loss of weight questionnaire, Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale III |
| Journal | Medicine |
| Year | 2023 |
| Country | South Korea |
| Language | English |
| Method | EFT / tapping |
| Publication type | Study / trial |
| Verification | ✓ Confirmed against the primary source |
Kang, D.-H., Kim, J.-Y., Park, Y.-C., Yoo, H.-R., & Jung, I. C. (2023). Efficacy and safety of a combination of emotional freedom technique with acupuncture versus acupuncture alone to treat psychiatric symptoms in Parkinson's disease: A protocol for a randomized, assessor-blind, parallel-group clinical trial. Medicine. https://doi.org/10.1097/MD.0000000000033714
This record is part of the Tapping Evidence Base — an openly-sourced, fully-referenced directory of the research on EFT/tapping.
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