Technological advancements in the treatment of anxiety and quality of sleep among teaching professionals - A pilot study

Anxiety is an unsettling emotional condition marked by sensations of concern, stress, and unease, frequently associated with disruptions in sleep patterns. With 20% of its fibers being efferent and the majority being afferent, the vagus nerve is an essential component of the autonomic nervous system and is responsible for controlling brain regions linked to anxiety. Through the activation of the vagal nerve, transcutaneous auricular vagal nerve stimulation, or taVNS, is a well-researched, risk-free method for reducing anxiety. This study aims to investigate whether taVNS can reduce anxiety and enhance sleep quality among teachers. A total of 28 teaching professionals were randomly divided into two groups with blind fold method, labelled as Group A and Group B, each comprising fourteen participants. This was a randomized feasibility study. Over a four-week period, Group A received taVNS combined with Jacobson relaxation exercises, while Group B underwent music therapy alongside Jacobson relaxation exercises. Outcome measures included the Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7 and the Sleep Quality Scale. After a 4-week treatment course, both Group A and Group B showed significant reductions in GAD-7 scores and improvements in SQS scores (P < 0.001). Group A exhibited a significantly higher efficacy rate than Group B. The study's outcomes suggest that transcutaneous auricular vagal nerve stimulation is effective in alleviating anxiety and enhancing sleep quality.