Abstract

PURPOSE
The Purpose of this study was to elucidate the effects of aromatherapy massage on the preoperative anxiety of stomach cancer patients.
METHOD
The research design was a nonequivalent control group non synchronized design. The data were collected during the period of October 2 to December 30, 2005 at H Hospital in Seoul. The subjects were 40 patients who were operated under general anesthesia for stomach cancer. State anxiety, systolic and diastolic blood pressure, pulse rate were measured on the day before surgery and the preoperative period. Data were analyzed by chi-square test, independent t-test, paired t-test.
RESULTS
Hypothesis 1 that the level of preoperative state anxiety of the experimental group who received aromatherapy massage is lower than that of the control group who did not received aromatherapy was supported(p=.004). Hypothesis 2 the physiological index of the preoperative anxiety of the experimental group who received aroma-therapy is lower than that of the control group who did not received aromatherapy.
CONCLUSION
According to these results, aromatherapy hand massage can be regarded as a partially effective nursing intervention that relives anxiety of surgical patients and decreases the blood pressure level.

• Keywords: Aromatherapy hand massage; Stomach cancer; Anxiety