THE IMPACT OF FOOT REFLEXOLOGY MASSAGE ON ANXIETY CAUSED BY BLOOD TRANSFUSION IN CHILDREN WITH THALASSEMIA

Introduction: Based on the results of formerly conducted studies, the application of invasive methods, such as blood transfusion, for the treatment of children with thalassemia cause distress and anxiety symptoms in these children; therefore, it is attempted to apply non-invasive, non-pharmacological, simple, and inexpensive nursing practice to improve these deficiencies. Thus, the present study was conducted to investigate the effect of foot reflexology massage on anxiety caused by blood transfusion in children with Thalassemia. Methodology: The present quasi-experimental study was carried out on 60 children with thalassemia who qualified according to inclusion criteria. Patients were randomly divided into three groups of intervention (recipient of reflexology massage), placebo (common massage), and control. The anxiety level of the patients with the anxiety scale was evaluated based on the obsessive-compulsive disorder (osbd-r) 20 minutes before transfusion. Patients of intervention group received 10 minutes of reflexology massage and those categorized in placebo group received 10 minutes of common massage. After transfusion, the anxiety level of the patients was measured; collected data was analyzed through SPSS22, paired t-test and ANOVA. Findings: There was a significant difference between the mean anxiety score of the patients in the intervention and placebo groups before and after the intervention (P < 0.05). However, in the control group, the anxiety score of the patients before and after intervention was not significantly different (P > 0.05). There was no significant difference between the mean score of anxiety in the three groups before intervention (P > 0.05). Subsequently, there was a significant difference between the mean score of anxiety in the three groups after intervention (P < 0.05). Conclusion: based on the findings of the present study, foot reflexology and common massage are quite helpful in reducing the anxiety of children with blood thalassemia. It is easy and cost-free to use this method to educate them on the parents of children with thalassemia, an effective step to reduce the anxiety of these children and for any other patient who might be suffering from anxiety for any miscellaneous reasons.