• Korean Journal of Adult Nursing
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• v.16 no.1
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• pp.146-155
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• 2004

Purpose: The Purpose of this study was to explain the effects of aromatherapy massage on the preoperative anxiety of hemorrhoidectomy patients, and to provide the effective and holistic nursing care to them. Method: The research design was a nonequivalent control group non-synchronized design. The data were collected during the period from November 1 to November 30, 2003 at K-Hospital in Seoul. The subjects were fifty patients who were to have a hemorrhoidectomy under general anesthesia. They were assigned to two groups, 25 subjects to the experimental group and 25 subjects to the control group. The State Anxiety Inventory tool was used to measure state-anxiety on all patients the day before surgery. Systolic and diastolic blood pressure, and pulse rate were measured on the day before surgery and the preoperative period. The experimental group received aromatherapy massage on the hand with lavender oil. Data were analyzed by $x^2$ test, independent t-test, paired t-test. Result: 1. Hypothesis 1, that the level of preoperative state-anxiety of the experimental group who received aromatherapy massage would be lower than that of the control group who did not received aromatherapy was supported(p=.047). 2. Hypothesis 2was that the Physiological index of the preoperative anxiety of the experimental group who received aromatherapy would be lower than that of the control group who did not received aromatherapy. The 1st subhypothesis that "the level of the preoperative systolic and diastolic blood pressure of the experimental group would be less than that of the control group" was not supported. Conclusion: Aromatherapy massage can be regarded as a partially effective nursing intervention that relives the preoperative anxiety of surgical patients and stabilizes vital signs.