Positive Health Online

Abstract

SEYYED-RASOOLI and COLLEAGUES, 1. Infectious and Tropical Diseases Research Center, Department of Medical-Surgical Nursing, Faculty of Nursing and Midwifery, Tabriz University of Medical Sciences, Tabriz, Iran; 2. Drug Applied Research Center, Plastic Surgery, Department of Medicine, Tabriz University of Medical Sciences, Tabriz, Iran; 3. Tabriz Health Services Management Research Center, Tabriz University of Medical Sciences, Tabriz, Iran; 4. Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Research Center, Department of Physiotherapy, Faculty of Rehabilitation, Tabriz University of Medical Sciences, Tabriz, Iran; 5. Infectious and Tropical Diseases Research Center, Department of Medical-Surgical Nursing, Faculty of Nursing and Midwifery, Tabriz University of Medical Sciences, Tabriz, Iran. Seyyediz@ymail.com ; 6. Mental Health Nursing, School of Nursing and Midwifery, University of the West of Scotland, Paisley, Scotland, United Kingdom conducted a single-blind clinical trial comparing the effect of aromatherapy massage with inhalation aromatherapy for anxiety and pain in burn patients.

Background

Anxiety and pain are recognized as major problems of burn patients; because pharmaceutical treatments for controlling anxiety and pain symptoms lead to complications and an increase in health costs, nonpharmacological nursing interventions were considered for this group of patients. This led to the present study aimed at comparing the effect of aromatherapy massage with inhalation aromatherapy for anxiety and pain in burn patients.

Methodology

This single-blind clinical trial was carried out on 90 patients with burns <20%. Patients were randomly assigned to one of three groups, namely aromatherapy massage, inhalation aromatherapy, and control group. The patients assigned to the aromatherapy massage group received a massage for half an hour using a blend of lavender and almond oils, while a blend of rose and lavender aroma was used for the inhalation aromatherapy group. Spielberger State Anxiety Inventory was used for measuring anxiety and the visual analog scale (VAS) scale was used for measuring pain.

Results

The results showed that three groups were equal in terms of demographics, disease characteristics, and scores of anxiety and pain at the baseline. The mean decreases of anxiety scores were -0.04±5.08, 6.33±12.55, and 6.43±10.60 in the control group, aromatherapy massage group, and inhalation group, respectively (p=0.007). The mean decrease of pain scores were -0.10±0.96, 1.70±1.84, and 0.97±1.56 in the control group, aromatherapy massage group, and inhalation group, respectively (p<0.001).

Conclusion

The study results showed the positive effect of aromatherapy massage and inhalation aromatherapy compared with the control group in reducing both anxiety and pain of burn patients. Therefore, both interventions, which are inexpensive, and non-invasive nursing tasks can be proposed for alleviating anxiety and pain of burn patients.

References

Seyyed-Rasooli A1, Salehi F2, Mohammadpoorasl A3, Goljaryan S4, Seyyedi Z5, Thomson B6. Comparing the effects of aromatherapy massage and inhalation aromatherapy on anxiety and pain in burn patients: A single-blind randomized clinical trial. Burns 42(8): 1774-1780. Dec 2016.doi: 10.1016/j.burns.2016.06.014. Epub Aug 27 2016.

Comment

The above research demonstrates the beneficial effects of aromatherapy massage and inhalation aromatherapy in the reduction of anxiety and pain in burn patients. The authors propose that these inexpensive and non-invasive interventions be made available clinically.