Both lavender fleur oil and unscented oil aromatherapy reduce preoperative anxiety in breast surgery patients: a randomized trial

•Both LFO and UO alleviated preoperative anxiety.•The LFO preparation contained a minimal amount of Lavandula angustifolia based on analysis for linalool and linalyl acetate.•Preoperative anxiety was relieved by a combination of aromatherapy and a placebo effect.

Study objectiveThe objective of this study was to determine whether lavender fleur oil (LFO) aromatherapy would reduce anxiety when administered to women before undergoing breast surgery.DesignThis was a single-site, randomized study comparing the effect of LFO to unscented oil (UO).SettingThe study was conducted in the preoperative holding area of the ambulatory surgery department of NYU Langone Medical Center.PatientsNinety three women, 18 years and older, scheduled for breast surgery. Women meeting inclusion/exclusion criteria were randomized to either LFO or UO aromatherapy and were blind to their assigned treatment.Outcome measuresSubjects completed a Speilberger State Anxiety Inventory for Adults (STAI) before and after aromatherapy. Vital signs were recorded before and after aromatherapy.ResultsSTAI-State questions were divided into positive and negative emotions for analysis. Before aromatherapy, there was no significant difference between groups by individual questions or overall average answer of either positive or negative questions. The use of both LFO and UO increased the positive STAI score totals, with the LFO group having a slightly, but statistically significant, greater increase. Both resulted in a statistically significant decrease in the negative score totals after treatment. There were no differences in vital signs between groups for either treatment. Following the conclusion of the trial LFO was analyzed and found to contain a very low content of the 2 major Lavandula angustifolia constituents.ConclusionsBoth LFO and UO aromatherapy treatments lowered anxiety before surgery despite no significant changes in vital signs. LFO treatment generated a slight but statistically significant increase in positive feelings compared with UO treatment. It is probable that the beneficial effect observed was due to both aromatherapy with LFO and a placebo effect related to the added attention given to the patients.