THE EFFECT OF REIKI PRACTICE ON POSTOPERATIVE PAIN, MOBILIZATION, AND VITAL SIGNS IN PATIENTS UNDERGOING TOTAL KNEE ARTHROPLASTY: A RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIAL

Total knee arthroplasty (TKA) is a widely performed surgical procedure for the management of advanced osteoarthritis and other degenerative joint diseases. Although TKA aims to improve functional mobility and quality of life, patients frequently experience severe postoperative pain, restricted movement, and physiological stress responses, particularly within the first 72 hours following surgery. Inadequate pain control during this early postoperative period may delay mobilization, prolong hospital stay, increase opioid consumption, and negatively affect overall recovery outcomes.

Complementary and integrative therapies have increasingly been incorporated into nursing care to support postoperative recovery. Reiki is a non-invasive, energy-based complementary therapy developed by Dr. Mikao Usui in Japan. It is based on the concept of facilitating the body's self-healing capacity through gentle touch or hands positioned slightly above the body to promote relaxation and physiological balance. Previous studies suggest that Reiki may reduce pain intensity, alleviate anxiety, and contribute to stabilization of physiological parameters; however, evidence remains limited and inconsistent, particularly in orthopedic surgical populations. Moreover, no randomized controlled study has comprehensively evaluated the simultaneous effects of Reiki on postoperative pain, mobilization, and vital signs in patients undergoing total knee arthroplasty.

This study is designed as a randomized, single-blind (statistician-blinded), pretest-posttest controlled clinical trial. The study will be conducted in the Orthopedics Department of Sinop Atatürk State Hospital between September 2025 and September 2026. A total of 90 patients undergoing elective total knee arthroplasty will be enrolled. Sample size was determined through power analysis (80% power, 5% significance level, effect size = 0.60). Participants will be randomly assigned to either the Reiki intervention group (n=45) or the control group (n=45) using block randomization to ensure balanced group allocation.

Participants in the intervention group will receive standardized Reiki therapy administered by a certified Reiki practitioner who has completed Level I and Level II Reiki training. Reiki will be applied at the 24th, 48th, and 72nd postoperative hours, at least four hours after administration of routine analgesic medication. Each session will last approximately 30-45 minutes. The application will involve gentle touch or hands positioned approximately 2 cm above the body at seven primary energy centers (crown, forehead, throat, heart, solar plexus, sacral, and root regions) as well as knee and foot areas. Each point will receive approximately 3-5 minutes of focused application.

The control group will receive routine postoperative care according to institutional protocols without Reiki intervention.