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Research: SMITH and colleagues,
Listed in Issue 84
Abstract
SMITH and colleagues, University of Colorado Health Sciences Center, School of Nursing, Box C-288, 4200 East Ninth Avenue, Denver, CO 80262, USA. marlaine.smith@uchsc.edu, assessed the outcomes of therapeutic massage for cancer in-patients .
Background
The purpose of the study was to examine the effects of therapeutic massage on pain, sleep quality, symptom distress, and anxiety in patients hospitalized for cancer treatment .
Methodology
Quasi-experimental controlled study with 41 patients admitted for cancer treatment receiving therapeutic massage, and 21 patients receiving a control therapy, nurse interaction . Variables measured before and after treatment were a numerical pain scale, a Likert-type scale measuring distress from pain, the Verran Snyder-Halpern Sleep Scale, McCorkle and Young's Symptom Distress Scale, and the Spielberger State Anxiety Inventory. ANOVA and t-tests were used to analyse differences in mean scores within and between groups.
Results
Mean scores for pain, sleep quality, symptom distress, and anxiety improved from baseline in the treatment group ; in the control group, only anxiety improved. Statistically significant interactions were found for pain, symptom distress, and sleep. Sleep improved only slightly in the treatment group but deteriorated significantly in the control group.
Conclusion
The study supports therapeutic massage as a valuable nursing tool for cancer patients receiving chemotherapy or radiation therapy .
References
Smith MC, Kemp J, Hemphill L, Vojir CP. Outcomes of Therapeutic Massage for Hospitalized Cancer Patients. Journal of Nursing Scholarship 34 (3): 257-262, 2002.
