Self-aromatherapy massage of the abdomen for the reduction of menstrual pain and anxiety during menstruation in nurses: A placebo-controlled clinical trial

AimThe purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of self-aromatherapy massage on menstrual pain and anxiety.Participants and methodsThe subjects were 63 female nurses who rated their menstrual pain >5 on a 10-point visual analogue scale. Subjects were non-randomly allocated into three groups: an experimental group (N = 26) who performed self-aromatherapy massage, a placebo group (N = 18), and a no-treatment control group (N = 19). Eleven participants dropped out of the study either because of nausea (experimental group, N = 1) or because they took medication during the trial (placebo group, N = 3; control group, N = 4). The final analysis included 25 in the experimental group, 15 in the placebo group, and 15 in the no-treatment control group. Menstrual pain and anxiety levels were assessed using a visual analogue scale, and we assessed the menstrual pain 4 times during a short time period.ResultsThe menstrual pain was significantly lower in the aromatherapy group than in the other two groups after 24 h. Using multiple regression analysis, the use of aromatherapy was found to be associated with the changes in menstrual pain levels (Beta = −1.74, 95% CI: −2.64 to −0.85, P < 0.001) and the level of anxiety (Beta = −0.53, 95% CI: −0.76 to −0.31, P = 0.001).ConclusionThese findings suggest that self-aromatherapy massage of the abdomen using topically applied essential oils may be an effective treatment that decreases menstrual pain and the level of anxiety.