The Effect of Hand and Foot Massage on Post-Cesarean Pain and Anxiety

Pain and anxiety are the most common complications after cesarean section. The use of medications is the most common strategy for alleviating these problems. However, the adverse effects of these drugs and lack of access to them for some patients, has led to an increase in application of non-drug methods such as massage. This blind clinical trial was performed in Omolbanin Hospital of Mashhad, Iran. A total of 80 pregnant women referring to maternity ward for elective cesarean, who had the inclusion criteria were selected through convenience sampling method. Subsequently, the participants were randomly assigned to two groups, and the visual analog scale was used to determine the level of pain and anxiety. Each foot and hand was massaged for five minutes, and then the levels of pain and anxiety were evaluated before the intervention and immediately, 60 and 90 minutes after the intervention. Data were analyzed performing Mann-Whitney, Chi-square, repeated measures ANOVA and Bonferroni test using SPSS, version 16. The findings of this study showed that there was no significant difference between the two groups concerning their levels of pain and anxiety before the massage (P>0.05). However, the levels of pain and anxiety significantly decreased in the intervention group, immediately, 60 and 90 minutes after the intervention (P<0.001). According to our results, hand and foot massage is associated with reduced pain and anxiety, and it can be used as a complementary method to alleviate pain and anxiety.