Immediate Effects of a Five-Minute Foot Massage on Patients in Critical Care.
Limited EvidenceIn Plain Language: high blood pressure, explained
| 25 patients were given 68 sessions of five-minute foot massage. Physiological data, which included heart rate, mean arterial blood pressure, respirations, peripheral oxygen saturation, were obtained from the patients bedside monitoring system. Results: There was no significant effect on peripheral oxygen saturation but a significant decrease in heart rate, blood pressure and respirations was noted. Conclusion: | Foot massage was shown to be effective in increasing relaxation in critically ill patients in intensive care.
Key Findings
- ✓A five-minute foot massage significantly decreased heart rate, blood pressure, and respiratory rate in critically ill patients.
- ✓Foot massage had no significant effect on peripheral oxygen saturation in critically ill patients.
- ✓Foot massage was effective in increasing relaxation in intensive care patients based on physiological measurements.
What This Means for You
A short foot massage may help you feel more relaxed in an intensive care setting, though this small study provides only limited evidence of its benefits.
What This Means for Practitioners
This observational study suggests foot massage can reduce heart rate and blood pressure in critical care patients, offering a potential non-invasive relaxation tool, though larger controlled trials are needed to confirm effectiveness.
Study Design: how this observational study was run
High blood pressure: common questions
What does this study say about high blood pressure?
A short foot massage may help you feel more relaxed in an intensive care setting, though this small study provides only limited evidence of its benefits.
What did this study find?
A five-minute foot massage significantly decreased heart rate, blood pressure, and respiratory rate in critically ill patients. Foot massage had no significant effect on peripheral oxygen saturation in critically ill patients. Foot massage was effective in increasing relaxation in intensive care patients based on physiological measurements.
How strong is this evidence?
This is a observational study and we rate its evidence limited. It covers 25 participants. It was published in Intensive and Critical Care Nursing. This study is indexed here for context; it did not test reflexology itself.
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Comparison of the effects of reflexology and classical hand massage on pain, anxiety, and vital signs in patients after coronary angiography: A randomized controlled trial
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