An interventional study of Electro-acupuncture control and Electro-acupuncture test in Hypertension, sponsored by University of California, Irvine. Recruiting at 2 sites in United States. Open to participants aged 18 Years to 85 Years. Per ClinicalTrials.gov, last updated 2025-04-15.
Sponsored by University of California, Irvine · Not applicable, Interventional, and Treatment
Based on previous published research in animals and human, the investigators hypothesize that electroacupuncture (EA) will have a positive effect on hypertension.
The purpose of this study is to prove: (1) hypertensive response at rest and provoked by stress are decreased by EA; (2) The mechanisms of EA that reduces elevated blood pressure. EA inhibits the sympathetic nervous system, decreases blood pressure and reduces the oxygen demand. Our prior data in animals shows that improvements in cardiovascular function during myocardial ischemia, reflex hypertension and sustained hypertension are mediated by an EA-induced sensory neural reflex originating in somatic nerves to reduce sympathetic nerve activity. The specific aims of the present study will allow us to better understand and modulate the sympathetic nervous discharge activity that can cause hypertension during normal activity and stress in humans. The potential clinical application is the therapeutic value of EA in patients with hypertension.
Furthermore, the study will also investigate gender differences in the blood pressure lowering effect of EA. In particular in middle-aged hypertensive women and men.
6,689 studies on the registry are indexed under Hypertension; 965 are open to participants now.
This study's planned enrollment of 160 is above the median of 90 across 4,995 interventional studies indexed under Hypertension.
Browse Hypertension studies →University of California, Irvine is the lead sponsor of 466 studies on the registry; 96 are open to participants now.
Of its 41 completed or terminated interventional studies of FDA-regulated products, 30 (73%) have results posted.
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Exclusion Criteria:
Blood pressure will be recorded before and after each EA treatment for 8 weeks. The course is a once a week 8-week treatment. Intervention is the Electro-acupuncture control treatment.
Procedure: Electro-acupuncture control · Procedure: Electro-acupuncture test
Blood pressure will be recorded before and after each EA treatment for 8 weeks. The course is a once a week 8-week treatment. Intervention is the active Electro-acupuncture treatment.
Procedure: Electro-acupuncture control · Procedure: Electro-acupuncture test
First visit, blood pressure monitoring for 60 minutes at rest, then monitoring for subsequent 24 hours to measure BP and heart rate. At next 6-8 visits, Electro-acupuncture (EA) treatment for 30 minutes will be administered. BP and heart rate measurements will be taken 30 minutes before and after EA.
Also known as: Blood pressure, Hypertension
First visit, blood pressure monitoring for 60 minutes at rest, then monitoring for subsequent 24 hours to measure BP and heart rate. At next 6-8 visits, Electro-acupuncture (EA) treatment for 30 minutes will be administered. BP and heart rate measurements will be taken 30 minutes before and after EA. At end of 8-week treatment, 24 hours blood pressure and heart rate will be measured.
Also known as: Blood pressure, Hypertension
blood pressure
evaluation of systolic and diastolic blood pressures changes
Time frame: 8 weeks
Heart rate
evaluation of heart rate change
Time frame: 8 weeks
plasma catecholamine
evaluation of plasma catecholamine (ng/ml) change
Time frame: 8 weeks
plasma renin
evaluation of plasma renin (ng/ml.hr) change
Time frame: 8 weeks
Plan to share: No
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University of California, Irvine