Objective
Determining the immediate effect of Reiki on abnormal blood pressure.
Methods
An experimental, double-blind study, in which were included 66 hypertensive patients, randomized to the three following study groups: control, placebo and experimental. The intervention lasted 20 minutes, the control group remained at rest, the placebo group received an imitation of the studied technique (mock Reiki) and the experimental group received the Reiki technique. Blood pressure was measured before and after the intervention by the same person with the same instrument.
Results
There was a decrease in blood pressure in the three groups and the reduction was greater in the experimental group, followed by the placebo and the control group. The ANOVA model for repeated measures showed a statistically significant difference among the groups (p <0.0001).
Conclusion
Reiki had a positive effect on reducing abnormal blood pressure, suggesting to be a complementary technique for the control of hypertension.
Hypertension; Therapeutic touch; Complementary therapies; Mind-body therapies; Integrative medicine