Background and purpose: Pain relief and reducing the interventions during labor is an essential aspect of obstetric care. Acupressure is one of the methods that is used to reduce pain and facilitate delivery. This study was designed to investigate the effect of acupressure before the onset of labor on the use of analgesics and oxytocin in term nulliparous women.

Materials and methods: In this clinical trial, 162 pregnant women without any symptoms of labor were randomly divided into three groups: acupressure, sham acupressure and control group. The subjects were selected from Shahid Akbar Abadi Hospital in Tehran, 2015. Acupressure was performed in the Sp6, BL32, and BL60 at 39-40 weeks of gestation in low risk participants. They were then followed during labor. Statistical analysis was performed in SPSS 22.0 applying Chi-square, Kruskal-Wallis and ANOVA.

Results: The use of analgesics during labor in the acupressure, sham acupressure, and control groups were 30%, 42%, and 50%, respectively and the Kruskal-Wallis test did not show a significant difference between the groups (P = 0.122). The use of oxytocin was 54% in the acupressure group, 58% in sham acupressure, and 78% in those who received routine care indicating statistically significant differences between the three groups (P = 0.028). The use of oxytocin was found to be lower in acupressure group compared with other groups.

Conclusion: Acupressure before labor decreased the consumption of oxytocin during labor. So it could be beneficial in decreasing interventions during labor.

(Clinical Trials Registry Number: IRCT2015042321904N1)