Effect of Reiki Treatments on Functional Recovery in Patients in Poststroke Rehabilitation: A Pilot Study

Objectives: The three objectives of this study were: (1) to evaluate the effectiveness of Reiki as an adjunctive treatment for patients with subacute stroke who were receiving standard rehabilitation as inpatients, (2) to evaluate a double-blinded procedure for training Reiki practitioners, and (3) to determine whether or not double-blinded Reiki and sham practitioners could determine which category they were in. Design: A modified double-blinded, placebo-controlled clinical trial with an additional historic control condition. Setting: The stroke unit of a major rehabilitation hospital. Subjects: Fifty (50) inpatients with subacute ischemic stroke, 31 male and 19 female. Interventions: There were four conditions: Reiki master, Reiki practitioner, sham Reiki, and no treatment (historic control). Subjects received up to 10 treatments over a 2½-week period in addition to standard rehabilitation. Outcome measures: Functional independence measure (FIM), and Center for Epidemiologic Studies - Depression (CES-D)...